


Shadow  On Your Wall

by IncognitoWritersClub



Category: Bates Motel (2013)
Genre: Crimes & Criminals, Drama, F/M, Protectiveness, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-12
Updated: 2017-07-10
Packaged: 2018-10-03 05:13:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 40,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10236638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IncognitoWritersClub/pseuds/IncognitoWritersClub
Summary: The first moment Alex Romero laid his eyes on her, he knew he would always protect her no matter what. So when a strange man is staying at the motel, Alex can't help but to dig deeper into who this man is.





	1. Outside Your House

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! We are here with a new 2 chapters fic! The events are taking place in season 2, when Alex is staying at the motel, and yes it is a bit out of character. Anyways, we really hope you enjoy this work and as always, your comments, thoughts, ideas or requests are very very welcome :)
> 
> IWC

CHAPTER 1

It had been a week since Alex came to the Bates Motel to check himself in, facing Norma and her curiosity and finally getting a key to room 11. A great thing was that Alex was never really emotionally attached to his home and never got homesick, so staying at the motel wasn't bothering him at all. Except that he couldn't avoid running into Norma on a daily basis and have her sneaking around his room, doing his laundry because "she knew him" apparently well enough for her to do so. And Alex valued his privacy and personal space. A lot. No matter if he was at his house, office or motel room.

Whiskey and bed was all you needed after a day's shift as a sheriff. That's how Romero had spent most of his evenings, at home and that's exactly the same he wanted it while staying at the motel. Norma's motel to be more specific. Talking about the Bates Motel, it had almost been full these last few days. And it was actually pretty nice to see Norma running her small business with an honest happiness, smile and not stress reflecting in her face lately. He remembered that time when he said to Norma that it's funny how she went into the service industry, because she didn't seem keen on serving anybody. And he was wrong.

Half laying in his bed now at 12am Alex's caught his mind replaying yesterday's moments over and over again. Norma cleaning his cut at her house. He tried so hard to avoid her, just a few seconds away from securely getting back into his room with his burning fist in an ice bucket and a bruise on his forehead. But there she was, using her commanding tone, that's more likely to be used on your son than the grown police man he was, insisting on cleaning his cut. He already knew there was no change in winning this argument with Norma and he was too exhausted to even try to. As much as he didn't want to admit it to himself, he didn't hate it. At all. First time having her so near to him. Looking straight into those deep pale blue eyes from up so close felt somewhat magical, he would say. Somewhat he couldn't quite explain. Like the feeling of air getting too thick in that moment? Time slowing down for a few seconds? Her legs lightly brushing up his, making his chest rise and fall faster than he would have wanted, his breathing stopping completely when her fingers touched his forehead putting on the ointment there…

Loud slam of the door woke Alex from his thoughts. The sound was coming from the inside, probably one of the other motel rooms. It was his protective sheriff's side that raised him from the bed to check from where the sound came from. Tucking his gun to his belt, Alex headed towards the door, opening it at the exact moment to see a middle aged man passing his room's door.

"Oh, evening. I-I'm staying at the room 12 there. I'm s-sorry if I woke you. I was just... going out, I-I mean heading towards my car. Yeah, it's right here, that one" the man pointed to the red truck near the motel's office. "I left my phone there and I needed it to make a call now and, and my room door just slammed from the wind I guess, I'm sorry."

"No problem. You have a goodnight." Alex answered, still examining the obviously very confused man. Why would someone get so nervous about a thing like that?

He closed the door, took off his gun and decided to call it a day. After taking a long and hot shower he got to bed, a few thoughts still running through his mind. And why the hell would someone park their car on the other side of the motel when there's plenty of space right in front of the room 12? After giving it some time, sleeping pills finally kicking and letting Alex to drift off to sleep.

The very next day when Alex woke up, his mind was still on the guy who had been outside the motel. Being the sheriff of a town comes with plenty of responsibilities. He was well aware of that and he had taken them very seriously the day he got the job. The protector of White Pine Bay. Or at least he was trying to. There was no denying in that this town is pretty much messed up. A lot of crazy people, who do reckless things., many people who uses other people for their own benefit. Alex had learned this the hard way, at a very young age. His father was one of these people. And all Alex want is for this town to be safe from the bad guys, even if it is quite impossible. He was at least trying to do his job. And if Alex Romero saw a hint of warning he would probably look into it or try to figure out the entire picture. Especially since the incident last night had happened on Norma Bates property. He most certainly wouldn't let this one just slip by him.

Alex did his usual morning routine which only really involved three things: shower, getting dressed and breakfast. After getting into his sheriff's outfit, Alex felt like himself again. This outfit represented the man that he was. Someone to be trusted, someone who will look after others and take care of things. It felt more than natural and right to him.

As he made his way over to motel's office, he made a quick glance towards room 12. He gave himself a mental note to check on the room after work, as well to see who the guy actually was. Just in case.

"Good morning, Alex! Do you want some coffee? I just made it." Norma greeted him with a happy smile. How this woman could look so stunning, seven in the morning, he would never know. Her blonde, curly hair moved in a strawberry scented cloud, the smell than he now associated with Norma Bates. His eyes drifted from floral pink blouse to the swell of her hips. Her high waisted, knee length blue skirt that fit a touch too tight for modesty. Somehow he already knew she would be in his dreams tonight with every inch of her soft, curvy body.

"Alex?" Norma asked with a frown on her face, having to repeat herself.

"What? What did you say?" he asked quickly, clearing his throat, his gaze now back on her face. He had heard her but he hadn't been listening to what she had been saying. He mentally kicked himself from losing control and letting his eyes wander down her body that way. He prayed it wasn't at least that obvious to her. And Alexander Romero never prays.

"Do you want some coffee? It's fresh." Norma said with a light smirk on her face. Of course she had picked up his little stare, maybe enjoying it just a little too much. But she didn't want to bug him too much today so she left it. For now.

"Yeah sure, that would be great." Alex replied fast. 'That would be great', really? Who was he? Was he actually being polite now? The stress had a weird affect on him, he needed to cut it out soon.

"I'll just give it to you in a takeaway cup so you can take it with you to work." Norma told him while adjusting her skirt a bit. And poured him a cup.

"Thanks." Alex replied in a low tone. He was fully back now, trying to keep it as cool as possible, still a bit embarrassed for looking at her a bit too long. He was already moving towards the door when he remembered the guy from last night, suddenly stopping in his tracks. It was probably him being over cautious but he needed to know who the man from room 12 was.

"Hey Norma, by the way, who is staying in room 12?" Alex asked trying to keep a casual tone, turning around to face her once again.

"What? Why are you asking?" she frowned, surprised by his question.

"I'm just curious on who the man is. Nothing more than that." Alex shrugged, sipping on his coffee. Damn, the woman made good coffee.

"Is this like a cop thing or something? You just wanna know everything, don't you?" she asked rolling her eyes at him.

"It's not a cop thing, Norma. I'm just wondering." he said. But in fact, it was a cop thing. His job made him overprotective.

"Well I'm sorry but I can't discuss other guests with you, Alex. But sure you can ask him if you're so curious." Norma said, a mocking tone could be sensed in her voice. Alex turned his gaze back to the door again without saying another word. Just as he started to walk towards the door slowly, Norma turned around, grabbing a few files from the table.

"I'll see you later, Sheriff." she was now gone from his sight, "Have a nice day!" a shout came from the back of the office.

It was Alex's chance. He put his coffee down, quickly grabbing the guest book that was lying open on the front desk. He needed to know who the heck that guy was and he certainly wouldn't ask him directly. His fingers swiftly went through the pages, trying to find the latest check-ins, eyes scanning through the list of dates and names. March. Room 12.

James Cohen.

Jackpot.

He heard tiny steps of Norma coming back. Quickly putting the book back down he grabbed his coffee and turned to leave. Already for the third time today.

Alex arrived at the office around 7.30am, he was early today. It was just him and a few others in already so he went through the giant pile of paperwork on his desk.

At around 9am he assumed his assistant Regina would be in by now. He walked outside just at a time to catch her coming in, with her leather coat on, purse in one hand and phone in the other.

"Late again, huh?" he asked a bit annoyed with her.

"Yes, sorry, Sheriff. Traffic can be a pain sometimes." she excused herself, quickly taking her coat off and sitting down at her usual place at the front desk.

'Yeah, sure it was traffic' Alex thought, shrugging it off since he needed to ask her for something important.

"Can you do me a favor and look this guy up?" he asked, handing her a piece of paper with a written name on it.

"Sure. Who is he?" she took the note, glancing at the name.

"I don't know." Alex said, his voice frustrated at her stupid question. "I think that's why I want you to look him up for me?" He raised his eyebrows at her, feeling a bit foolish for even having to explain this to her.

"Oh yeah, that's right. Got ya. Will be done, Sheriff." She said a little flustered for a second. Her expression was quickly changed by a questioning grin, clearly asking if there was anything else he wanted her to do or she can go back to her usual work, which was basically answering any calls and texting on her phone whole day long.

Alex thanked her and went back into his office to continue his work, it was going to be another long day for the Sheriff of White Pine Bay.

***

3 days passed and every night he could heard the same wooden door of the room nearby being closed, without a slam this time, way more quiet and careful than the night before. Heavy, hurried steps going past his door, towards the direction of the motel's office. The man, James, as he knew his name now, was like clock, leaving around 12 am, coming back ten minutes later. What could this man be possibly be doing around this hour?

He still hadn't heard back from Regina about this guy yet, so he figured he was nobody. No one to be concerned about. But the slight of curiosity was still there, he still wondered why this man was doing this late at night at the exact same time, every night Not that he was gonna confront him, maybe he was a really punctual smoker and had to have cigarette at this specific time of the night? Maybe he was insomniac who needed to have a late night walk to clear his mind? Alex thought of a lot of things that could possibly explain it and he dropped it for some time.

Until two days later.

It was around 7am as Alex woke up, took a quick shower, got ready for work and went outside, heading towards the office for his morning cup of coffee. Right in the doorway he bumped into James leaving the motel's office.

"Oh, good morning, I'm sorry, my bad." the man said in a rushed tone and stepped aside.

"Morning, are you late to somewhere?" Alex frowned. He never met the guy this early, especially in Norma's office.

"Actually yes, I have to be in Seattle by the afternoon so I just came to inform the motel's, ugh, manager, that I will be coming back after a few days."

"Business?" he asked, scanning the man's face who looked confused. Again. Did this guy have some sheriff phobia or what?

"Yes. Yeah, business stuff." James smiled with a wry smirk.

"Ok, have a safe trip then." Alex said and reached for the office door.

"I-I sure will."

Alex got inside the office, his gaze following the man though the window now.

"Good morning to you too, Alex?" Norma's voice came from behind the desk.

He stayed quiet for another second, watching the man who was now getting into the car.

Navy blue sedan that stood right in front of room 12.

That same night Alex was lying in his motel room unable to sleep. He had taken his sleeping pills way too late tonight for them to kick in before midnight. After tossing and turning in bed for half an hour he decided to go outside for a small walk in the cool night air.

Putting on his leather jacket and taking the room key, Alex went outside, closing and locking the door quietly. He sat on the chair he found on the motel's porch, not far away from the office. The night sky was dark and cloudy, light wind starting to form. Thunder could be heard far away, promising a storm to come. Alex found this calming, before the storm weather, relaxing and soothing, those few minutes making you feel like floating in the vacuum. Looking around, he saw that all motel's guests were probably already sleeping, no light on, including room 12. Now he couldn't really blame James, spending a few minutes outside at night was really calming and you could get used to it.

After sitting for some time he decided to walk around the motel and go back in, finally the feel of sleepiness taking over his body. As he was walking pass the Bates house it was the light in the window that caught his attention. He stopped, taking a better look and the he saw it.

A woman's silhouette behind the curtains that were too sheer to hide anything.

Norma.

In her bedroom.

She was standing in front, what he assumed was a mirror or her closet. Still for a moment, then slowly getting herself out of her sky blue cardigan, throwing it on the bed. Knowing the time, she was probably getting ready for bed, he assumed. Now her fingers went to her floral blouse, unbuttoning the first button. Alex breathing became heavier, chest starting to rise and fall faster. He knew it was bad. Very, very inappropriate. But he just couldn't move, couldn't pull his eyes away from the scene happening in the window. From the shape of her. He gulped at the sight of her finally undoing all the buttons, the blouse now open at the front, delicate black lacing covering the porcelain skin of her chest. Taking the shirt off completely and tossing it on the bed too, the perfect curves of her waist, hips and breasts now fully exposed. Her hands moved to the belt of her skirt next, unclasping it and moving to the zipper on the side. She slided it down her radiant legs, letting it pool at the floor. Alex eyes follow the contour of her body. In his mind he was the one undressing her.

Now standing only in her matching underwear, she looked invincible. The color black had never looked this good before, in Alex's eyes, as it did on her pale, glowing skin. He tried to look away from her. He really did. Alex was mesmerized by her, not realizing that he is acting like some creepy voyeur. The growing beating of his heart pumping through his whole body, filling his ears. She was examining herself in the mirror, hand running over her collarbones, down the cleave and belly, stopping at her upper right thigh, caressing the skin there for few seconds.

It took few minutes for Alex to get himself together and pull his gaze away from the window. It was a hard thing to do but he respected Norma too much. He felt embarrassed for staring at her for so long, he knew better than peeping on a unsuspecting woman getting undressed and feeling all the things he felt. Who the hell was he, some creepy stalker? -No. He quickly looked around to see if someone was around, trying to look as smooth as possible in this awkward situation. He turned around and made it back to his room fast. He knew he needed to forget about what had just happened. But at the same time he knew that all his sleepiness was completely gone for tonight. He was more awake than ever.

***

The day after, Alex got ready for work way too early, skipping his morning coffee, going straight to the car. He wouldn't be able to look Norma in the eye, at least not for today, after the previous night… He arrived at the police station and went straight into his office, only to be greeted by his assistant, Regina. He was quite surprised that she had come in earlier than him, the Sheriff himself. It was never a case with her, he was used to her being late all the time.

"Regina, you're early today." Alex stated the obvious, for no particular reason at all.

"Yes, I needed to talk to you." she explained to him. Grabbing a hold of a file with a bunch of papers in it. The file looked like a mess. Classic Regina.

"I looked up that name you gave me quite a while ago, you remember? Some Cohen guy? This is what I found." she said and handed him the file. "I forgot to give it to you sir, I'm sorry." Regina looked away from him, assuming he would get mad at her. She wasn't really the greatest assistant of the year exactly. Alex ignored her and opened up the file immediately. The word "sexuall assult" written more times than it should have been, was caught by his eyes first.

James Cohen, born on 1973 in Aberdeen, Washington. Arrested multiple times since 1990 in Michigan, Arizona, Illinois, South Carolina...

Alex eyes running through the words quickly.

'Oh my god.'

***


	2. Inside Your House

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N. Hello, guys! We are back with the second chapter of Shadow on Your Wall. Sorry it took a while, hope it didn't kill a vibe to find out the rest!
> 
> As it is incorporated in season 2 events, we are fully aware that in the end of the chapter Norma and Alex are acting out of character for that time. We just found that scene of the S2 interesting to Normero'ticize more. :)
> 
> Really looking forward to hear from you all. Let's us know your thoughts, ideas, likes/dislikes. Have any request or suggestion? Hit us up!
> 
> Also, in this chapter there is a scene of violence. It's slight, nothing really too harsh but we are still putting a warning here in case it might trigger or upset you in any way. Making you feel bad is not our intention at all!
> 
> Lots of love,
> 
> -IWC

CHAPTER 2

Sexual harassment.

Sexuall assault.

Obscene acts.

Stalking.

Threatening.

Alex eyes scanning throught the list that was going on and on, different year, states.

And that was the moment when everything clicked in his head.

12 am every night.

The man walking outside the motel.

12 am.

Norma changing to get ready for bed.

Right in front of her window with her goddamn see through curtains, he now hated them more than anything.

Everything just added up now and Alex felt uncontrollable rage rising though his body and mind. He was furious. His normally calm and pleasant demeanor quickly changing, nostrils flaring, his eyes flashing and closing into slits. His free hand closed into a fist, feeling muscles go tense. He was infuriated as his face and neck went red. The taste in his mouth became tart, every bone in his body shaking with fury.

Without saying another words, in one rapid move, he left to drive away to the Bates Motel. With the file in his hand. And one fist. It was challenging to driving like that but it didn't matter right now. He didn't even care. He just wanted to make something clear for this guy. To explain a few things.

He arrived at the motel in a few minutes. He had no chance to get outside his car, because he saw the black sedan belonging to James Cohen pulling out of the motel's parking lot to leave. He immediately turned around on the gravel, getting back on the road, driving straight behind James car.

He was in his big police SUV car and he had been following this guy for a good five minutes now. The anger not going away, even growing more as he now was so close to this sick pervert. He did not want to put the sirens on, because there was no need to draw any attention for what he had planned to do.

James noticed the police car following him, at first trying to get rid of the tail. After few failed attempts he finally gave in, pulling over to the side. The road was empty, surrounded by woods, no cars seen around. Alex pulled over right in front of the sedan, casually getting out of his SUV, face neutral, though he could feel his teeth clenched.

"Did I do something, sir? You have been following me for some time now." James said while slowly getting out of his car, looking a bit worried. And he sure had something to be worried about, he just didn't know what yet. Himself.

"Yeah, you actually did something." Alex smiled gently, looking him up and down. "You have been doing a lot of things, actually."

He saw how the man in front of him now kinda freezed in his feet, posture tense, shaky hands smoothing over a denim jacket he wore.

"I-I don't understand what you are talking about." he stuttered, eyes running from Alex to the side of the road and back.

"I was just wondering, how were your late night walks going on? You know, anything interesting? Cause you seemed really committed to it." Romero was now standing face to face with James.

"I-I don't know.." his eyes were now wide, "Well… it's great, I guess. Wha- why are you asking?" he faltered.

"Oh. Great, right? Great?" Alex chuckled, looking back on the road to see if any cars were coming.

Then he punched him. His right fist hitting James straight in the face. He grabbed him forcefully by his arm, pushing him against his own car.

"Then how great is this, huh?" he smashed his head against the hood harder. "Don't you know better than to watch women getting undressed, you piece of shit?" Alex hissed into his ear while holding a firm grip on the man's shirt. Alex punched him again. And feeling his rage take over his entire body. Just to imagine that this scumbag had been watching Norma naked made him see black. And all he wanted to do was to take it out on this man in front of him. He deserved it.

"Now you're gonna drive back, pay for your stay and then leave." Alex ordered him forcefully. "And if I find out that you did not do exactly what I had told you, I will come for you. " he grunted and shoved him so he fell onto the ground, hard.

"And don't you ever, EVER come near Norma Bates or her family again. Did I make myself clear? Next time you run into me- you're dead."

The man just nodded with horror in his now blood covered face. Alex turned around and left this scumbag on the side of the road.

***

Norma was sitting in the back of the office,sorting out some of the files when she heard the door open and someone rushed in.

"H-hello, hi, I would like to check out." she heard a mumble in a hurried voice she recognized. It was that man from room 12. Jim or James. She sometimes bumped into him at the motel's porch or when he came for a coffee at the office, making small talk. He seemed like a decent, clean and polite guy. Unlike the other guests, he never made a mess in his room for her to clean and she really appreciated it.

Norma came from the back, her eyes landing on the guy who was now at the desk, shaky hands holding the room 12 key. The she saw it. The guy's face all swollen up, marked by cleaned but still fresh scars.

"Are you alright, sir?" she asked in a confused voice, "You mean you wanna check out now? Your reservation is till the end of the week, you still have four days left? I mean, it's already paid for."

"Yes. Now. And I'm fine. Just an accident." he fretted. "Can you just check me out? I don't need any refund, I really have to leave like right now. Here's the key for the room, my stuff is already packed in my car."

Norma took the key, looking at the man and not knowing what to say. He was not looking at her, keeping his gaze to the ground or his hands. Without saying anything else, he just turned around and left.

"Goodbye, hope you enjoyed your stay? See you next time at the Bates Motel?..." she was cut off by the slam of the door.

What a weird day.

***

Alex went back to the motel room after half an hour, seeing Cohen's car leaving. He was sitting in his SUV all this time, watching him checking out and handing back the key from the room. Alex knew he would leave, the man was a coward, only capable of perverted passive acts against women. But Alex still couldn't leave Norma alone with him even for a minute, so he was watching from his car parked on the side of the road so it wasn't noticeable. Observing quietly.

In his bathroom, he cleaned his fist under the cool water, deciding there was no need to take care of the cuts. He looked at his watch. 9:00 am. He had to be at court at 10am today, so he still had time to take a shower and change into a suit.

At 9:30 he was now ready to leave, inaudibly praying to get to his car without meeting Norma on the porch,her seeing his bruised hand was something he did not need right now.

Alex opened the door, not looking around, heading straight to his car.

"Hey, Sheriff Romero, I wanted to ask you something."

Here goes nothing. He turned his head to the right to see Norma watering flowers.

"Yeah."

"Can I call you by your name? It's a little stupid at this point. 'Hey, Sheriff Romero." she chuckled, waving her hand in the air, her gaze suddenly settling on his body, looking up and down. "I've never seen you in a suit."

"Yeah, I'm on my way to testify in the Kyle Miller hearing," he said, turning his gaze to his jacket. "So... that's what you wanted to ask me? Yeah, you can call me Alex. " he replied, turning away.

"No, actually, I'm gonna talk to Mayor Woodriff about giving me Lee Berman's seat. I was wondering if you had some tips on issues to cover."

Here comes more problems.

"You're not gonna get that seat." he told her coldly.

"What is it with you about me…" she started to question him, but got interrupted.

"Just, I know what you're up against, how things work. It's very political, in the worst sense." he said to her like she wasn't aware of it herself, the competition she would be facing.

"Well, my friend Christine Heldens got me a meeting. I don't think that could've happened if there was no chance. " she tried to defend herself.

"Well, good luck. I hope it goes well, I do." even if he tried to sound believable, it didn't really work. Even Alex himself didn't believe when he said it.

She gave him an annoyed glare and continued to water the beautiful flowers that were surrounding her motel. And Alex turned around to leave again but then another thought crossed his mind. He must inform her about what she was not aware of. He wan't sure it was a right time, but still felt a need to do it. So he spinned around once more, facing her.

"Uh, listen. It's a little awkward, but I think you should be made aware of it." he started.

"What?" she asked with a frown, wrapping her arms around herself a little, feeling the cold breeze that was in the air, making her body form goosebumps on her light, pale skin.

"Well, sometimes at night, when you have your light on in the bedroom, you can see right through those curtains." he said with some embarrassment in his voice, clearly not liking this subject whatsoever. But he wanted her to know so she could stop showing herself off to people she did not know. Unaware of it.

"You can?" Norma asked stunned. She obviously had no idea that you could. Thinking that the curtains would keep her out of sight from other people's eyes.

"Yeah."

Norma looked away from him for just a moment. Taking in the new information she had just received, awkward silence creeping in.

"Okay..." he mumbled awkwardly turning around to leave.

"What happened to your hand?!" she almost shouted at him after a second, a worried frown on her face. Apparently dropping the curtains, for now anyways. She gently took his hand into hers to inspect it carefully. Alex slightly winced at the contact, that made Norma move her attention to his face. Of course he had to wrap the hand to cover it, so it wouldn't be that noticeable. But it was already too late now.

"So? What happened?" she asked again, concerned.

"Nothing, just work stuff." You know, the usual." he said while looking at her, trying to make the statement believable.

"Alright, big shot." Norma smirked at him, secretly loving the fact that he had beaten up some bad guy probably. "You need to clean it up. I will do it for you. " she said casually, like it was obvious, "Wow, and it's actually the second time in a few weeks? Am I becoming your personal nurse, sheriff?"

"Really Norma, that's not necessary. I'm fine." he said and tucked his hand away from her sight.

She ignored his childish behavior.

"Oh come on, let's go up to the house." she announced and nodded towards the house. "Really, Alex. You already know you can't argue with me here."

Alex gave out a heavy sigh. Of course she wouldn't drop this, she was Norma Bates. Stubborn and stern.

They made their way up to the house so Norma could clean those small cuts on his hand. He sat down observing every move she made: going around the kitchen, opening cupboards, looking for her first aid kit. It made him realize that he had actually beaten someone up, for just looking at her. Of course, the guy had an ugly record of different sexual assaults that just made Alex's protective cop side creep in. At least that's what he was telling himself all this time. But there was something more. More than just protectiveness. The thought of having someone else admire her body. The thought of another man laying his eyes on her perfectly shaped lines. Thinking of her in that way…

"So who exactly did you have to beat up this time?" Norma asked while taking a seat deathly close to him. What a déjà vu.

"As I said, it was just work stuff." he stated while clenching his jaw. Jealousy filling his body once again, just thinking about it. He didn't want to tell her what had happened, because he didn't want to scare her, that was not his intention. Neither he did want her to explain why he had beaten the guy himself and didn't officially arrest him? But he did want to make sure that she would stop getting undressed in front of that damn window.

"Okay, tough guy. Whatever." she muttered, rolling her eyes. Taking a small gauze pad and putting some saline on it so she could clean his wound properly. Norma did not want to risk him getting an infection just because she had cleaned it poorly. She gently swiped it across his hand, trying to clean it as much as possible.

"I actually had no idea that you could see through those curtains…" she mentioned carefully, looking at his slight uncomfortable reaction. She was embarrassed, but she felt like she needed to mention it so he wouldn't think she was putting on a free show on purpose or trying to pull anything. With him or anyone else.

"Yeah…" he tailed off, the image of her beautiful body he saw night . He would probably never let that memory go. It was too dear and precision to his heart. Just because he had probably never appreciated her beauty more than that night. Any beauty in general. The awareness of that she had no clue the affect she had on him. That she was so perfect without even knowing it.

"Just get new curtains Norma." he said in his typical 'sheriff' voice. Forward and austere.

"What is up with you and these curtains, Alex? It's just curtains." she stated the obvious, slight smirk on her face noticeable. Obviously teasing him.

"It's not just curtains, Norma. You have to be careful." he told her without stopping himself from the words to slip out.

"Of what?" she asked carefully, a bit afraid of the answer.

"Of everyone. There are creeps everywhere in this town, Norma. Around every corner. You don't even know what kind of perverts might be staying at your motel." he said harshly, getting a bit frustrated with her that she could not see the bigger picture here, that was very obvious to him.

"Well that's ironic, knowing that you were the only one who actually noticed those curtains in a first place." she said with a mocking tone in her voice.

Was he now a creep in her eyes? No matter how ashamed he was feeling right now, there was no way he would tell that there was an actual pervert watching her all this time. It would make things worse and there was no need anymore as he had already taken care of it.

"Because I respect you enough to tell you, Norma. I don't want any creeps enjoying it like some kind of a show."

"Why? Why you don't want that?" she asked gently, looking into his eyes, leaning a little closer to him. She was teasing again, wanting him to say it out loud. To show how protective of her he was. How he wanted to be the only one to ever lay his eyes on her. Of course Norma wasn't exposing herself in front of the window on purpose, she had no idea. But when Alex told her about it, that way making it obvious he saw her getting undressed, a warm feel tickled her stomach. Breathing hitched at the thought of him watching her, the mere idea making her tingle with excitement...

"I mean… uhm… I mean it's not safe." he stuttered, trying to keep her gaze away from him. "I don't want you to get in any more trouble, especially because of something so stupid as those see through curtains."

"Oh so I'm just a one big trouble for you to take care of, huh?" Norma frowned, clearly not getting an answer she wanted. Deep inside she was hoping Alex secretly enjoyed what he saw, that it was something more than just him noticing those see through curtains and immediately making her aware of it because he was a sheriff and it was his duty to assure safety of this town's people. Was he just being stoic and guarded? Or was it just stupid of her to hope it is something more?

He stayed quiet for a minute, his gaze wandering around the room as thinking something over.

"It's not that." his gaze finally setting on her.. "I don't want anyone else to see you exposed. To watch you. To touch you with their eyes. To think of you."

When Norma moved even closer Alex knew exactly what was about to happen. Gently she took his cheeks in her soft hands, firmly placing her lips against his. He closed his eyes to enjoy the feeling of her. He felt his arms betraying him, wrapping them arms around her. Trying to get a grip on her, in their seating position. She pushed her tongue into his warm and waiting mouth, letting out a moan. Alex could barely hold it back any longer.

He took a hold behind her knees and in one smooth move pulled her up from the chair. She wrapped her legs around his hips, holding onto him like her life was depending on it.

This felt more than right. Norma's mouth was soft and gentle and she moved her lips against his with undeniable passion. Finally discovering what the other's tongue tasted like.

Alex had finally tasted Norma Bates. And he would never get enough.

He firmly put her down on the kitchen table, her kisses becoming more fiercely and aggressive. She nipped at his bottom lip. His insistent mouth parting her shaking lips, sending wild tremors along her nerves, evoking from her sensations she had never known she was capable of feeling. She knotted her fists in his shirt, pulling him harder against her, making him groan low in his throat. His face has the slightest bit of stubble as it rubbed against her skin. But she didn't care, the sensation and smell of him making her body tremble. He felt wonderful.

"I really need you to touch me, Alex. God, please touch me." he moaned in a pleading voice.

Alex's large hands pinned her hips to the table, his fingers grazing across Norma's soaking wet panties and when he reached her core, she let out loud moan from the back of her mouth, feeling muscles tightening.

It's too much.

"We can't," he murmured but Norma only grunted and pressed him down harder against her.

"Norma, we can't. Not now." he pulled away. Norma looked down at him, down his body that was tense with lust and need.

"Why, what's wrong?" she asked with confusion on her face.

"I have to be in a courthouse in like… " he took a glance at his watch, "five minutes. And I don't want to, you know, rush it all." He said, watching a slight sign of sadness creeping in her face as she apparently misunderstood what he meant. He came closer, leaning to the side of her face. "What I mean is, I want to take you slowly." his low tone whispering in her ear, "I want to take you for hours and hours, making you moan my name as you come over and over again…"

He pulled back, slight smirk on his face, watching her mouth now drop open, eyes wide open staring at him.

"Thanks for the first aid, Mr. Bates. Maybe you can come over to my room after I'm back? I really need some clean towels. " he said in a serious, representative voice. "Oh and sheets. I will definitely need my sheets to be changed after."

Giving a still speechless Norma a look, he turned around and left the kitchen.

Right now she needed to change something other.

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End  
> or  
> Not The End  
> ..?


	3. Shadow Hunt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ho ho ho hello!
> 
> We read all your reviews and decided to continue this but... what's coming next is probably not what you were all expecting at all..?
> 
> One guest review said it was just happening too quick made us all have some discussion and rethink it. Yes, we totally agree, as we mentioned before- ending way OOC. Just that this story was planned out as 2 chapters one, we wrapped it up pretty quickly. Guilty as charged.
> 
> Anyways, here we are again. Wanna burn slow? Let's burn slow!
> 
> The end of last chapter and now this continuation is just *does something accidentally, pretends it was on purpose*.
> 
> Leave your thoughts, ideas and suggestions!
> 
> Lots of Normero love,
> 
> -IWC

She woke up tangled in her bed sheets, feeling all warm and sweaty. Legs wrapped around the pillow, fists knotted in white bedding. It took a few minutes for Norma to calm herself down and steady her breath.

It was something new. These dreams that she had been having lately.

She was always just so used to having nightmares. Even though they were gone for some time when she first moved to White Pine Bay and it made her think that maybe this was it. That maybe she finally got over them, maybe she became stronger and it can't break through her new shell, her new life, new town, new house, and new bed.

But the nightmares came back after some time and she had to face the fact that there's no escape. You simply couldn't run away from something that was trapped in your own mind, scratched in your gut, pumped in your veins. And she just hated it. Hated herself. Hated that she was a living memorial of all the pain and all the tragedy she'd experienced and that it will always stick with her no matter where she goes or what she does.

But lately… It had been different.

It all started when she had cleaned Alex's cuts on his fist, up at her house that morning. After he told her about those curtains. That night she had the most vibrant dream ever. The dream where that event had an alternative ending. In her dream, he didn't just got up and leave like he did, thanking her for cleaning his cut. His response to when she asked if she was just one big problem to him, was different. How Alex told her that he wanted to be the only one to watch her. To think of her. How they kissed, he laying her on the kitchen table, with her legs wrapped around him and soft moans leaving her lips. How he whispered to her about his want to make love to her slowly and taking his time, making her blossom again and again… The arousal was what had woken her up that morning, sheets tightly pushed between her legs, looking for friction, body shivering, chest rising and falling way too fast.

It looked so real that it actually confused her. She went to his room that evening, willing to change towels for him because somewhere deep in her mind she had remembered him asking her to. What she didn't realise is that the request was also a part of that dream. That's why Alex looked so confused, seeing her at his door at 11pm. She argued with him, saying he was the one asking to come over and change towels in his room, clearly mentioning the time after his shift. And he sweared he had never asked her to do so and she probably confused it with some other guest's request.

Since then she's been having those kind of dreams quite often, even though over a month has passed from that time. The same event of her cleaning his cuts, ending with different scenarios, different places, his hands on her everywhere, making her skin burn…

She blamed it all on her lack of sexual activity. She hasn't been with a man for over 6 months now and she has been seeing Alex around quite often, so maybe it was just her mind playing tricks on her and choosing exactly his familiar face as an object of her naughty dreams. At least that's how she tried to explain it to herself.

Norma slowly got up from the bed and headed to the window. Morning sky looked cold as ice but still and peaceful.

Hot and steamy morning shower was exactly what she needed at the time as the water had some kind of power to clean not only her body but also her mind, purify her thoughts. After about twenty minutes of standing under hot water stream, washing her hair carefully, rubbing, even scratching her whole body with light foams, steam filled with sweet almond scent hovering around, body finally relaxing, softening.

Norma left bathroom, body wrapped in fuzzy white towel, water dripping from her soaked platinum locks. There was no rush today as Norman was gone for the whole week, keeping Dylan company on the trip to Seattle, so there was no one to cook breakfast for. Norma never cooked for herself, she found no point in doing it as there was no one to enjoy her meals, compliment her efforts and cooking skills.

She took time picking out her outfit. Even if on the inside she was feeling her worst, Norma would never let her outside appearance reflect that. Most of the time well combined outfit even could make her feel better. Light blue floral skirt complementing her eyes, cream silk blouse, light coat of mascara, nude lipstick, few sprays of floral perfume on her neck and wrist. Ready.

She headed to the motel's office despite knowing the fact that there was obviously no work to be done. Her motel business was dying again as she hadn't had any guests for about three weeks now. Of course it was a hell of a headache for Norma, but there also was that Norman's health situation that was getting worse every day, so motel problems was pushed down to the second place in The Great List of Problems by Norma Bates.

The first thing to do in the office, of course, was to get her daily dose of caffeine.

"Black as the devil, hot as hell, pure as an angel, sweet as love." she mumbled while warming up her hands around the mug, pleasant smell of coffee filling up the office.

It was about 11 a.m. when she heard a sound of a car pulling up in motel's parking lot. She jumped in excitement expecting for new guests, finally. It felt like hundred years had passed since she did that whole check-in process and handed out the key. And she missed the feeling so much, actually.

Norma blew out a soft breath of disappointment as she finally saw that the car was a police SUV. Alex.

It was awkward between him and her lately. She didn't know how to act around him and of course those dreams weren't helping at all.

She saw him get out of the car and go towards his room, not closing the door behind. Within a minute, he went outside carrying a box, putting it in the back of the SUV. He did the same with a few more boxes, finally closing and locking the door after. Norma was watching him behind the motel blinds, suddenly flinching as she saw him turn and walk towards the office.

She quickly ran behind the desk, opening her laptop and making herself look busy. Alex opened the door, walking in, clearing his throat for Norma to notice him.

"Hey, Norma." he began, walking towards the desk.

"Oh hey, Alex! I didn't noticed you." she said with a smile, kicking herself mentally after realizing how stupid it sounded as she clearly heard him walk through the door. She even had a freaking bell on it, for god's sake.

"Huh, yeah, I just came by to say I already packed all the stuff from the room 11." he pointed towards his car.

"Are you leaving?" slight mix of surprise and disappointment couldn't be concealed in her voice as she walked from behind her desk.

"Yeah, the new house is finally ready." Alex explained.

"Oh." she exhaled, looking at him not knowing what to say.

"Uh, yeah.. It's amazing how much stuff you can accumulate in a motel room over three months."

She smiled with a warm smile at him, eyes gazing at his face. He suddenly looked around as remembering something, hand going to the pocket of his leather jacket, taking out a key, handing it to Norma.

"Oh, here." his hand went back, taking out a piece of paper this time, "And this is for all the time I spent here."

"No, no, no," she began, after realising it was a check is hands.

"No, no." he tried to hand her in the piece of paper, her hands flying back in refuse.

"No. No, no, no." she repeated again, trying to avoid the paper as if he was trying to burn her hands with it.

"Norma, you're gonna take the money." he said, trying once again to hand in het the check.

"No. No, you're a family friend," she pointed a finger at him, "I'm not taking your money." she waved as it was the end to the topic.

"The bypass is half-paved," he explained, hand pointing towards the side where the road was, "and they are starting cars on the finished part tomorrow. You're gonna need it. I'm not taking no for an answer."

She finally gave up, looking him straight into the eyes and taking the paper from his hand. She gazed at it, still not sure, especially after seeing the sum on it.

"Thank you." she gave him a soft look, taking her guard down, waving at the piece of paper in her hand.

They stayed quiet for a few seconds, eyes wandering around the office, avoiding each other's gaze.

"All right. Well, good-bye." it was Alex who broke the silence first, "Thank you for everything."

"Sure. Sure, sure, sure." she nodded with a smile, eyes radiating the softest blue he had ever seen, "Yeah."

He looked trough the window, the sky was heavy with rain now. Silence settling in again.

"So, um… I don't know, I guess I'll see you around." she chuckled awkwardly, hand waving around.

"Yeaah." he trailed off, hearing a giggle escape her lips. He took a small step back, taking a look at her, then suddenly opening his hands awkwardly, moving closer.

"Well..." he mumbled, dropping his hands as soon as she saw her not responding, confusion in her eyes, not quite understanding what he was doing. He let out an awkward laugh, looking at her as she finally realised. Norma then tried going for a handshake, holding out her hand for him, as he slightly shoved it away, getting closer to her again with his open arms.

"Okay…" she chuckled nervously, at first closing her arms then wrapping them around his neck. As soon as she hugged him, she felt her body relax, melting into his embrace. She nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck, feeling hot skin there. She noticed his pulse picking up as she was now breathing in his neck, taking in the smell of him. His hand stroked her back up and down a few times, her curly blond hair tickling his cheek.

They stood there for some time, none of them wanting to let go of each other. It felt right. Them, with their hands wrapped around each other.

She finally turned her face, her lips now accidentally mere inches away from his. Her eyes went to his slightly parted lips, the time freezing in that moment. Memories of her previous dreams now going through her head, her tongue darting out to lick her suddenly dry lips.

She managed to compose herself after a second, turning her lips towards his cheek, planting a few light pecks there and stepping aside. The situation was awkward for both of them, but they both had enjoyed the closeness of each other that was their embrace.

"Bye." he said in a low voice, looking at her the last time before turning around and heading towards his SUV.

"Bye." she sighed with a warm smile on her face, it dropping as soon as he got into his car.

It was the sound of him starting the engine that kind of woke her up, her legs quickly moving her body towards Alex's car, jumping straight in front of it. She waved a sign for him to hold on, now slowly walking to the side of the car where Alex was sitting. He opened the window, looking at her in confusion.

"It's just…" she began, "I just wanted to tell you…" You could see the wheels turning in her head, trying to figure out how to put everything into the right words.

Alex looked at her, his gaze still, examining her expression that now looked really emotional, as if trying to prepare to talk without her voice breaking.

"I just always felt safe… when you were here." she finished, looking at him with watery eyes that now reminded him of a sea after the storm. Calm now but also fragile.

"Thank you, Norma." he replied in a low voice, looking at the frail smile she gave him. Deep inside he felt proud of himself for making her feel safe. It felt good to have that effect on someone you deeply cared about.

He now closed the window and drove out of the parking lot, Norma still standing at the same spot, her eyes following his car. She felt a small sting in her heart at the thought that she wouldn't be seeing him around so much anymore. She really got used to having him here all the time. Just a few feet away from her.

 

***

 

After closing the office for the night, Norma went upstairs to the house. It was already 11:20pm and she planned on taking a bath and reading a book to fall asleep easier. She needed to keep her mind occupied so she could relax more. Especially since she was all alone now in this big empty house.

She always felt anxious sleeping at the house alone, considering all the things that have happened to her in this crazy ass town. It was different when Alex was staying at the motel. She really meant what she had told him- she always felt safe when she knew he was there. Near her. Now she had to find something to do to calm her mind and not think too much about all those horrifying things that always kept her mind busy.

After taking a long bubbly bath and reading a quite boring novel, Norma finally felt relaxed and serene, the exhaustion making her eyes feel heavy with the lack of sleep. She got out of the bath, drying herself with the soft towel and wrapping a long blue satin robe around that fitted her body extremely well. Walking to the bedroom, her eyes went to the window. Walking to it, she closed the thick black-out curtains. The new ones.

She was sitting in front of her vanity table, rubbing the lotion on her legs. Her every night routine she was so used to. Hands were running up and down the pale skin of her thigh, when her mind wandered back to the dream she had that night before, the image causing goosebumps all over her body. Her pushed up against the doorframe of her kitchen, the familiar smell of leather filling her nostrils. Strong palms slowly running up her thigh… Warm mouth working on her neck making her pull at thick black hair while letting out a moan…

Her thoughts were cut off by a loud bang coming from outside, making her flicker and drop the hand from where it was at her inner thigh now.

Norma freezed for a moment, listening carefully. She turned her eyes to the clock on her wall. 01:17am. It was really late already and somehow that made the circumstances even more scary. She slowly stood up, turning off the lamp on her bedside table, then walking towards the window. She hesitated for a moment, before slightly opening the curtains enough to peek outside. The night sky was clear and the moon was illuminating the surroundings outside. She's been looking for a few minutes till she noticed a strange shadow moving around the corner of the motel. Her breathing picked up, quickly closing the curtains and stepping away from the window now clearly panicked. She rushed to the drawer where she kept her gun, quickly finding it among her clothes. Taking the phone that was lying on her vanity table, she left her bedroom, now walking slowly and quietly, barely breathing, trying to make out any noise she might hear outside. Finally getting down the stairs, she went to the living room's window, taking a look there, gun now tightly clutched in her shaking hand. She didn't notice anything moving, but from there she now saw the road that was going pass the motel. Norma blinked a few times, trying to make out what she was seeing. It was a car parked there, on the side of the road, right behind few trees that made it harder to notice it at first. She rushed to the other window, where she could take a better look at the car. It was an old sedan. Dark one, apparently. She couldn't make out the plate numbers.

She heard another noise, now from the back of the house. Someone was near the back door. Norma didn't wait a second longer, running upstairs and locking herself in the bedroom. She kneeled behind her bed, the only thing she could hear now was her raging heartbeat. She unlocked her phone, her shaky fingers trying to pick the right number. There was no time to think, she didn't know who else to call.

She was now holding the phone to her ear, trying to breath and praying for Alex to pick up. He answered after two signals.

"Norma, what the he…" he started, voice low and sleepy.

"Alex, I think there's someone outside my house." she whispered in a hurried voice.

"What?" his voice was now louder, she could hear him sitting up in his bed.

"I heard something outside and then saw someone walking round the motel," she rushed, "There's a car parked on the side of the road in front of the motel. Alex, it think that someone is now at my back door, I don't know what to do, I'm…"

"What car is it?" he cut her off. "How does it look like?" his worried voice was something that wasn't familiar to her. She was so used to tough cop image of him. His emotions was hard to read most of the time, but now she could hear his deep concern just over the phone.

"I don't know, some old sedan. Dark one, probably black or navy blue. Why? How does that matter? Do I have to go outside and like take plate numbers or should I…" she panted.

"No, Norma, no. No. You're not going anywhere. I'm coming. Where are you now? Is he in the house?" he asked in a hurried voice, now clearly walking around the room.

"I locked myself in the bedroom upstairs." she whispered, "And I don't know. I don't think so. At least I can't hear anything."

"Stay there locked, I'll be there in a second. Just don't go anywhere and don't do anything stupid, Norma. I'm already getting into my car." he warned her.

"Ok, Alex. I trust you ok? I totally trust you, just please hurry up." she begged in a quiet voice. She really did trust him, after all the times he had told her that she should. Well now she did.

She hung up, holding her breath to listen. Trying to catch any sound of a movement going on from outside. She stayed like that for a minute not being able to hear anything. Finally standing up from behind the bed in the dark room, she slowly moved towards the door to listen more carefully. Placing an ear on the cold wood, breathing quickening once again. All she could hear was her fast heart beating. After another minute she heard a car rush into the motel's parking lot, gravel rustling under the speeding car's tires as she heard it stop in front of the house. Norma rushed to the window, opening the curtains to see Alex getting out of his SUV. In a few steps he ran up the stairs faster than ever, now standing on the house's porch, one hand placed on his right, where the gun was. In one swift move, he kicked out the door, going inside, eyes adjusting to the now complete darkness of the house. He couldn't see anything that was unusual to him. No man in his sight.

He checked downstairs, posture tense with a gun in his rough hands, looking for any trace of an intruder. After making sure that there was no one there Alex went upstairs, doing the same thing there. The house was quiet, no danger spotted. All clear.

"Norma?" he called her while standing behind the closed door of her bedroom. "Norma, it's me, Alex. You can open the door, it's safe now, no one is in the house." he tried to sound soothing but failed miserably because he had been tensed the entire time.

After few second he heard a sound of a key in a door's lock, doors slowly opening. There she was, standing in her satin robe, eyes wide and filled with fear. Without waiting for him to say anything, she jumped to him, hands wrapping around his neck, burying her face in his warm chest. Alex stayed like that for a second, then finally snaking his hands around her waist, pushing her even closer into his embrace. She was breathing heavily into his chest, body still slightly trembling from the racing heartbeat. His warm palm stroked her back up and down, feeling her body relax a little bit, breathing steadying. All of the worries she had felt just a few seconds before had now vanished from her body. His protective arms was now wrapped around her and she felt safe again. Only he had this affect on her, and she appreciated him so much in this moment.

"It's ok now. Everything is ok." he mumbled in her soft curls, "You're safe now, everything is fine." feeling his own voice failing him slightly. He tried to comfort her as much as possible, understanding her fear. If he had been scared for her, he could only imagine what she was feeling right now. He had felt his blood turn cold when she had told him over the phone that there was someone outside her house. He had felt helpless to be completely honest, just mentally praying to get to her house in time. For it to not be too late. All he had ever wanted was for her to be safe and when he was not around he simply couldn't protect her to the fullest.

They've stayed like this for a while till Norma finally calmed down, raising her head from his chest, exhaling deeply. He dropped his hands from her, lightly brushing them over her hips as he did so. Such an innocently accidental move causing light shiver wash down her body.

"Norma, I need you to describe him to me." he asked in a serious voice, "What did he look like, what he was wearing?" his voice was demanding, searching for answers only she could give him. Her eyes was on his, but it didn't look like she was fully there to him. He gently touched her arm trying to calm her down even more.

"Norma?" he asked gently, starting to get a bit worried since she didn't answer him right away.

"I…" she started off. Her voice failing her. "I couldn't… I couldn't see him clearly, Alex." she explained, "It was kinda dark outside, but all I know it was a man. Definitely a man, a tall one. I'm sure." it sounded like she tried to convince herself more than him.

"What about the car? Where did you see it?" his face concerned, trying to get as much information from her as he could.

"It was parked on the side of the road in front of the motel." she waved her hand towards the side, "I spotted it through the window in my living room. Couldn't make out much, but it was an old dark sedan, looked like the early 90's one. It was ugly as hell." she puffed out. The strong and stern Norma Bates was back now and he relaxed a bit by the sound of her voice now.

"It was probably gone by the time I showed up here, because I saw nothing on the road or nearby the motel." he said, gazing around the room, his mind already knowing the answers. Feeling his fists tighten up, and his jaw clenched hard.

He knew who that stranger was. He had known the second she mentioned the navy blue sedan over the phone. The description of the car fitting perfectly and he saw that car before. What he didn't know was why the guy would ever come back here after he made the consequences pretty clear to him.

It was something about her, this woman in front of him, a force of nature that you just couldn't get away from. The the ethereal unexplainable attraction of her, something subconscious, enigmatic. She would pull you in without any intention to do so, without her or you even knowing it at first. And one day you just realise you are lost in her world.

"Norma, I need to talk to you about something." he started, after hesitating for a few minutes. He had hoped he would never have to mention this to her ever, but he had no choice now. She was in danger and he would never forgive himself if anything happened to her. Especially if he could prevent it.

"About what?" she said with a frown on her face, eyes gazing at Alex in confusion.

"I think we might want to sit down?"

 

***

 

"For how long?" she asked in a taut voice, pacing around the room, "How long has he been watching me, Alex?!" she was almost yelling at him, her worried soul taking over her body. She wasn't mad at him, no. Just haunted by the information he had just shared with her. She had not expected this at all, and it was disturbing to her that someone who she did not know had been staring at her while being almost completely naked. Her stomach twisted at the mere though of it.

"I don't know Norma. I guess since he first came here and... um, probably, until I took care of it." he wondered in an awkward tone, suddenly a bit ashamed of what he had done to the man. But Alex knew that he had left him no choice in the matter than to scare him off by threatening him had been the only way to show him that he was being serious when it came to the safety of Norma.

"But why you didn't arrest him?" she stopped in front of the sofa where Alex was sitting, raising her eyebrows at him.

"Because there was no evidence. You can't arrest a person without collecting any evidence." he explained in a serious tone, wishing it was as clear to her as it was to him. "And I decided I could take care of it myself. The guy looked like a coward, I thought the threat would do enough for him to stay away from this town." he told while looking at her worried frame.

"Well, it didn't!" she exclaimed, wrapping arms around herself to calm down a bit.

"I get that now, Norma." he gave her a look. Her words hurting him a bit. It ached in him that she was now so scared because of this.

"I don't know what to do, Alex! Dylan and Norman are out of town for the rest of the week. What should I do?" she panicked again, starting to pace around the room all over again, "What if he comes back?! Do you think he will come back?" she asked him in a hurried voice, the look on her face told him how terrified she actually was. She understood how bad this situation was.

"Calm down, Norma!" he raised his voice, "According to his profile, he has been stalking people before. So he probably will be back, yes. I would suggest you go away for the rest of the week until I take care of it. I already put in a search for a navy 90's sedan," he explained, "You should leave this house for a while, stay somewhere else. As far as I'm concerned, this house is not safe for now." Alex voice was sharp, wanting to get his point clear to her so she could understand what exactly he meant.

"But where should I go?" she said in a small and lost voice, "I don't have anywhere else to go." the hint of tears in her eyes was visible to him.

"I don't know, just not here and not any motel in town. It's not too hard to find someone in those places." he explained, "It's better you stay at your relatives or a friend's place. Someone you know and can trust."

She stopped walking around, staying quiet for a moment and then sitting on the armchair in front of where Alex was sitting. Sitting there silently, trying to figure out what exactly she should do. Where she could possibly go. Norma kept her gaze down, examining her hands that were nervously scrunching the end of her robe's belt.

"Alex..?" she started, voice quiet and unsure, finally rising her eyes to look at him, brown meeting blue. "Do you think… Do you think maybe I could stay at your place for a while…?"

 

***


	4. Never alone in a dark room

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, bunnies!
> 
> We are here with this pretty short chapter of SOYW. We are kind of still considering should we continue and toy with this story and this plot a little bit more, shorter chapter but more frequent updates, or should we just drop it and move on to somthing different? Help us out by leaving your opinion! :)
> 
> Also, we have a Twitter now!
> 
> You can find us as Incognito_WC there and we are very open to any of your requests, ideas or if you wanna talk about anything in general. Thoughts on season 5? This fanfic? A suggestion? Some criticism? Collab? Maybe some great Nomero idea you always had in mind? Or maybe you are the one who found out who we are? Ha ha! Don't hesitate, hit us up there and share your amazing mind.
> 
> Stay Normero ,
> 
> -IWC

"I-I don't think that's a good idea, Norma." Alex started, sadness and vulnerability in her face breaking his heart.

"It's just…" her voice broke, "I just don't have anyone else to ask…"

"Any other family members? Friends?" he questioned in a calm voice.

She looked at him, her teary eyes silently pleading for a second, then her face expression suddenly changing.

"You know what, nevermind." she raised from the sofa, one hand drying out the tears from her eyes. "Maybe he won't come back, you know. I'll just stay here. And I have a gun to defend myself." she said in a strict voice, turning away from him.

"You have a gun?!" he raised his voice in surprise. "Since when, Norma?"

"Since that scumbag Abernathy tried to kill me?" she scoffed, "And I'm not going to explain myself to you now, Alex."

There were in silence for a few minutes, Norma's back turned to Alex who was still sitting on the couch.

"Okay." he finally whispered with a sigh.

"Okay what?" she turned her head at him, frowning.

"Okay, yes, you can stay at my place till we trace this guy." he said in calm tone, seeing her face turn from confusion to honest surprise.

"Oh- ooh.." she breathed out placing one hand on her heart, still quite stunned by his words but eyes now shining, "Alex, are you sure? I mean, I'm not gonna bother you or anything and you now I can still…"

"What I'm sure about is that this house is not safe for you to stay in for now. " he cut her off, standing up. "So just go pack yourself some... stuff, and we are leaving. It's like 2am already."

"Like, right now?" she asked raising her brows at Alex.

"Yes, right now, Norma." he stated in a slightly annoyed voice, "I'll be waiting for you down here."

"Ok, ok, ok." she whispered in a hurried voice waving her hands in the air, running upstairs.

She quickly got her traveling bag from under the bed tossing in a few clothes from her closet, running to the bathroom to take her toothbrush, face wash and a few other things. Norma zipped the bag heading towards the door when she realised that she's still wearing her robe.

"Shit." she hissed walking back to her closet, opening it up to find something to wear. Simple black pants and a baby blue blouse looked like an option so she quickly changed, putting the robe in the bag and now finally leaving her bedroom.

When she went down the stairs, Alex was pacing next to the door.

"You ready?" he asked, opening the door for her.

"Yes, we can go." she answered, tensing at the feeling of his hand at the small of her back, leading her through the door.

Norma stopped, putting the bag on the ground to find the keys and lock the door. When she was done, she saw Alex picking up the bag to carry it for her.

"Oh, thanks." she smiled walking next to him.

It took 10 minutes to get to Alex place, ground humps around the house telling about the recent building process. He parked his SUV on the street, turning off the engine, both of them getting out of the car. He took her bag, carrying it to the door, unlocking it and welcoming Norma inside.

She slowly walked inside the dark dark house, stumbling on something in the dark.

"Ouch!" she exclaimed, light turning on for her to see it was a box.

"Oh careful there, are you alright?" he asked a bit worried.

"Yeah, I'm fine." she exhaled, "Who the hell keeps a box in front of the door, Alex?!"

"I still haven't fully unpacked since I moved here." he explained now moving the box to the side. "Most of the stuff is still in boxes."

"Oh, I see." she tailed off, now walking further into the house, looking around what seemed like a living room. Only furniture in the room being the armchair and the tv, surrounded by dozen of carton boxes.

"As I said, it's still a mess there." he said awkwardly waving his hand around the room, putting her bag on the armchair there.

"It's fine, it's just boxes and you work a lot, so…" she tailed off, now holding on her bag, silencing for a moment. "So where should I..?" she started, looking around, now realising that there's actually no couch to be seen.

"Oh. Yeah." he looked at her, "You can take my bed, in that room," he pointed towards the wooden door, "And I'll just crash here."

"Oh no, no, Alex. No. It's your house, I'm taking the armchair, it's totally fine." she started, shaking her head at him.

"No, Norma, you're taking the bed, it's not comfortable here." he cut her off.

"That's what I mean, Alex. You will get back pain and you have work and as I said I don't want to cause you any inconvenience." she tried to argue again with him.

"It's fine with me, Norma. I've slept there before, it's alright for me. You're not sleeping on the armchair and that's the end of the discussion." he stated, making clear that the argument is done.

"Ok, let's see then," she said walking toward the wooden door he had pointed to before, opening it, finding the switch and turning on the light to look around there. "The bed is pretty big… I mean, we can you know, like, we split it in half or something, I mean we can stay on our sides and…" she tried to state the idea awkwardly, moving her hand around. "I mean I sleep calmly and I'm not one of those people who take the entire bed, you know." she looked at him for his reaction.

Alex stayed silent for a moment, looking at her stunned then finally coming back to his senses.

"Ok, fine. I will just get you an extra blanket." He clearly knew this was a bad idea, him and Norma in the same bed, but he was just too tired to argue at this point. And he wasn't totally against the idea of sleeping in the same bed as Norma.

He went to get the extra blanket he had mentioned, and Norma took the opportunity to get herself ready for bed. It was the middle of the night, her eyes was feeling heavy because of the lack of sleep she has not had yet. She opened up her night bag to take out her make up remover, her toothbrush and her pajamas.

'Hmm… where is it?' she thought as she searched in her large bag for the piece of clothing that felt like her life was depending on it.

'I'm sure I packed it… maybe it's in the bottom' she thought, trying to convince herself that she had actually packed it with her.

Nothing.

She found nothing that even resembles a nightgown. She quickly pulled out everything she had in the bag, not believing she hadn't packed everything she needed.

"No, no, no." she repeated while looking into the now empty bag.

"What's the matter?" Alex asked from behind her, seeing her little freak out happening.

"I… uhm… I forgot my nightwear." she explained while looking around the room, not wanting to make eye contact with him. Not really understanding why it was so hard for her to even look at him.

"This is not like me Alex! I'm an excellent packer you know. I can't believe I forgot something!" she exclaimed, clearly frustrated at herself.

He chuckled lightly. Norma Bates, an expert of being over dramatic.

"Calm down, Norma." he said, trying to keep a grin from his face. "I can find you something to sleep in."

Alex walked across the room to the drawers, opening few of them till finally pulling out red plaid button up shirt.

"Will this one work?" he asked showing her a shirt, "I don't know, it's, uh, pretty long. Or do want me to find you some pants or..?"

"Oh no, no, that's fine I guess." she replied quickly, taking the shirt from Alex, "Thank you."

"No problem."

"Can I go change in the.." Norma pointed towards what she thought was bathroom door.

"Yeah. Yes. Sure." he replied, atmosphere in the room becoming a little bit more awkward.

She quickly collected the stuff she needed from her bag, walking into the bathroom and closing the door behind her. Norma let out a shaky breath, trying to compose herself. What is happening to her? She took off her clothes, putting on Alex's flannel shirt that felt really soft against her skin. Buttoning it up she could feel the familiar smell surrounding her. It smelled like Alex. The feeling making her head a bit dizzy for a moment, light wave of warmth running through her body. She shaked her head, now moving on brushing her teeth to distract her mind from certain thoughts that the smell had caused.

After finishing, she slipped into her blue robe tightening it around her waist. She looked at the mirror again, hand fixing golden curls around her face. After starring at her reflection for a moment and taking a few deep breaths, she opened the door, walking back into the bedroom just the time Alex was changing, catching him pulling a shirt over his head. Her jaw dropped a little as her eyes settled on his well toned abs, looking for a bit too long for him not to notice.

"Oh-uh are.. Are you done?" he cleared his throat awkwardly, noticing her standing in the doorway. "I brought you this blanket here." he pointed on the bed.

"Oh, yeah, ok. Thank you." Norma walked to her bag, putting her stuff back in, neatly folding every piece of clothing just to find something to do. She thanked god for the dim light as now only side bed lamps were illuminating the room. She knew she was definitely blushing and couldn't do much about it.

"So, which side do you wanna take?" he asked now standing next to the bed.

"Amm.. I don't care actually. This one would be alright." she waved her hand to the left side of the bed, the one that was closer to where she was standing. She was more concerned about having him so close to her while sleeping, then which side she would sleep on.

He nodded slightly towards her, confirming that she could take that side and he would take the other. He was gonna take the side closest to the door which made him feel more safe about Norma. This whole stalker thing was actually pretty nerve wracking for him too. Even if he didn't admit it to himself. The idea of another man laying his eyes on her made him want to just kill this guy.

"Ehm, Alex, aren't you gonna sleep?" Norma asked and disturbed his little thinking. His thoughts catching up on him and he hadn't noticed that he had been staring into nowhere. She was removing her robe carefully, her movements painfully slow according to him. His shirt was amusingly long on her. She quickly got into bed, he could only catch a quick glimpse on her perfectly toned legs.

"Yeah I am, I was just thinking, sorry" he cleared his throat, not knowing why he had said sorry. Neither did she.

He laid himself next to her, feeling the warmth coming from her body. He had to control himself, so he wouldn't pull her into his embrace. And the temptation was high.

"Alex?" her voice was small and vulnerable in the big room.

"Yes?" he asked faking a yawn. He really needed to get some sleep, he had work in the morning and he did not trust himself when it came to being this close to her. He could feel the scent of her, it was a mix of her perfume, together with her shampoo and her own scent. The scent was very familiar to him, it almost scared him that he knew it so well. And how comforting it was.

She stayed quiet for a few seconds, clearly hesitating.

"I'm scared." she whispered in the dark, her voice barely audible to him.

He sighed. Not because he was exasperated with her, nor irritated. But the entire situation was getting on his nerves. This guy had scared her to the point where she can't even feel relaxed in his own house. She was scared. And it was because of this disgusting man.

"Don't be. I'll handle it." he looked at her, turning his head towards her. Wanting to make sure she would be okay during the night.

"But why me? Why not anyone else? I don't get it." she looked back at him, her face telling she was genuinely terrified.

'Because you are the most beautiful woman I know.' he thought to himself, although those words never leaving his lips.

"I don't know Norma, all I know is that I will take care of it, okay? So don't worry too much." he answered instead, trying to calm her down. Just a little bit anyways.

She didn't reply right away, he assumed her mind was going on full speed. Trying to make sense out of things. He didn't blame her at all, he actually was surprised she was handling this so well. She hadn't had a freak out… yet.

"Goodnight, Alex" she was tired of thinking. Exhausted to be more exact. She needed sleep and so did he.

"Goodnight, Norma." was his simple response. He could feel his heavy eyelids starting to close, he needed to be up soon and he needed all the rest he could possibly get.

Norma was lying awake for at least an hour now. The bed felt comfortable but her mind was still not letting her fall into peaceful sleep. She brushed her hand over the soft fabric of Alex's shirt she was wearing. Lifting a corner of it's collar to her face, Norma breathed in a scent of it, the gesture immediately bringing a shiver of goosebumps across her skin. The shirt wasn't enough, she needed warmth. And a combination of a soothing warmth and the smell that was doing things to her lying so dangerously close. She listened into the dark, Alex steady breathing and chest rising and falling in undisturbed rhythm confirming he was sound asleep. She still hesitated for a second before leaning in, closing the distance between two bodies, laying herself to his side. She carefully placed her head on his chest, the scent of him so close to her, radiating from his warm skin and filling her nostrils. Her heart raced at first, even scarring her that maybe it will wake him up. After few deep breaths she finally relaxed into him, the sound of his heartbeats making her feel calm. He always soothed her in some way. Even when he wasn't aware of it himself. She didn't know what it was about this man but she never ever felt this way before.

Norma could feel him pull his arms around her, making her body tense a bit. She glanced up to him. Yes, still asleep. He was doing it in his state of unconscious.

She smiled lightly, relaxing again. Eyelids finally closing to welcome the peaceful sleep.

She could get used to this.


	5. Clean sheets in winter time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody!
> 
> We want to thank you so much for being interested in this story! With your help and supportive words we've decided to continue this story and make more out of it. We will try and update with shorter chapters maybe once a week or so, evolving the relationship of Normero to see where it goes ;)
> 
> Hope you enjoy the new chapter! See you soon.
> 
> Lots of Unicorny love,
> 
> -IWC

"Oh...oh my god..."

He opened his eyes sleepily, the quiet whisper from beside waking him up. He looked at the alarm clock on the bedside table. 4:11am. It was still dark outside so he couldn't make out much in the room, but felt warmth radiating from someone on his right. Turning his head, he saw Norma lying on her belly curled up on his side, right hand placed on his chest, one leg wrapped around his blanket.

She mumbled again, this time writhing a bit, words too quiet for Alex to understand what she was saying. He looked at her now a bit frowned face, assuming she was having a nightmare. It was absolutely understandable after all she had been through that night. And if he could take her fear away he would in a heartbeat.

"Norma…?" he whispered softly, brushing a curl from her face, "Hey, it's alright, you're safe." his whisper probably too quiet to be heard by Norma in her deep dreams. He heard her breathing becoming heavier with every breath she was taking.

"Alex…" she quietly moaned this time, now causing a frown on Alex's face. He tensed, feeling her hand brushing against his chest, legs now tightening around the blanket even harder. "A-Alex.." his name escaping her lips a bit louder now. There was no way he had mistaken that name for someone else's. She was dreaming about him.

Alex grinned in the dark. This definitely didn't sound like she was having a nightmare.

***

Norma woke up from the sunshine peeking through the bedroom's window. She slowly blinked a few times, adjusting her sensitive eyes to the intense sunlight. Where was she? Lazily stretching her body she looked around the room, finally remembering where she was. Alex's place.

She rolled to the other side of the bed to take a look at the time. 10:48am. It was unlikely Norma Bates to wake up that late, she was definitely a lark person and that was really beneficial to her as she owned and worked at her own motel. She had her own business and had to be up and alert early in the morning. But not today. She laid her head on Alex's pillow breathing in his scent that was on it. It smelt like home to her. It has been months, even years, since she had such a peaceful and relaxing sleep and that sounded so ironical considering yesterday's events. But it was true, she felt more well rested than ever. She remembered dreaming of something but not being able to pinpoint what the dream was exactly about. She hated when that happens, having a dream then not remembering what it was about. The bed was really comfortable and the same familiar scent was making her melt into the sheets even more, snuggling her nose into the fluffy white pillow. Everything smelled like him and it somehow was the most comforting feeling in the world, she had to admit without really admitting it.

She shook the dreamy smile off her face letting out a long sigh and finally rising from bed. There was no point in staying in bed all day when she had a whole house to herself to explore. Even if she had nowhere to go today, she still can't be rolling around in bed all day long. She already felt like a burden to Alex, even though he still haven't made or said anything to show her that she's bothering him or isn't welcome here. Anyways, she felt like she should get up and do something productive, maybe clean around this house and unpack some boxes as Alex apparently had no time for that.

Norma took a quick morning shower, using Alex's shampoo as she forgot to bring hers. What is the point in 2 in 1? Do they even work? She would know soon enough. She dressed up, putting on her casual navy blue dress, one of the few clothing pieces she managed to throw in the bag before leaving in such a hurry last night. Hair still damp, locks forming into a pretty crazy, wavy, mess as Alex didn't seem to own a blow dryer. And she hadn't really expected him to either.

Walking into the living room, Norma let out a deep sigh. What looked like a pretty huge and light room if cleaned, was stuffed with dozen of boxes and under the white sheets covered stuff, what Norma assumed was furniture. Some of them were even blocking the windows, shadows making the room look more like a cave than a place where people live and spend their time.

After getting all cleaning supplies she could find in Alex's house Norma was ready for the mission she had planned. First, she removed all the white fabrics, revealing a pretty impressive retro bookshelf, a chest of drawers and dark wooden table with two matching chairs. The furniture looking well kept and as she owned such an antique house herself, Norma had no doubt it was all limited hand-made pieces. After dusting off all the furnishings and moving them around a bit, to find a perfect placing for each thing, she was now ready to move on to the boxes and start unpacking them and putting everything where it belonged, in her opinion anyways. The first two were stuffed with old books and magazines that went to the newly uncovered bookshelf. Then followed the kitchen supplies, cutlery, plates and cups, few of Alex's shirts, trophies, some old playboy's that she assumed was a memory from his teenage years, well at least she hoped so, also a very impressive western movies collection and a lot of other probably long forgotten stuff he didn't even remember he owned.

It was a pretty interesting experience, going through all this antique stuff that was Alex Romero's possessions. It was kind of a way for her to get to know the other side of a person, cause material things could tell a lot of stories if you let them. After unpacking for a great two and a half hours, there was only one box left in the room. She kneeled down to the box, opening it like a chest of an unknown treasure, finding a few more dvds and another wooden box lying in it. She took out the old dark box, running the hand through its top, now seeing it decorated with golden details. She opened the box, a few small square papers sliding out of it. Pictures. A bunch of old photos, most of them in sepia or black and white tones, mainly weared off and crumpled ones. Norma started looking through the photos and the people in them. Most of them from what she assumed were family picnics, some were from celebrations and holidays, smiling faces of children near huge Christmas trees or blowing out the candles on birthday cake. She immediately recognized the young boy with dark hair and eyes surrounded by thick eyelashes. Face full of joy and happiness. He must have been close to 4 years old on the picture she was holding carefully in her hands. The look on his face was pure innocent. He sure had been a beautiful child. She digged further into the box to find more recent photos that wasn't from his childhood. She found pictures with Alex and his friends. Wearing a uniform together with the other guys in the pictures. They all looked like very important people, faces serious. She assumed it was from when he was in the marines. He was already handsome back then, she thought to herself. But quickly shifted her mind to something else. She looked on the back of the pictures that said "Camp Pendleton, California" on it. She smiled softly and continued with her snooping.

Her eyes are scamming through the box, trying to find something interesting. She spot a smaller box inside of the bigger one. A white one, with tiny flowers on it. This does not belong to Alex, does it? Of course curiosity won this one also .

She opened it to find old pictures of his mother. He looked like a male version of his mom. She had the same dark hair as he had, thick and wavy. And her eyelashes was identical to his. Well, now she knows where he got his great genes from. His beautiful mother.

Norma searched further into the box to find old wedding pictures, she assumed it was his parents wedding. And it was. His mother looked like the happiest woman on earth, wearing flowy milk white dress, hair decorated with delicate white flowers. The muscular and tall man, probably Alex's father, was hugging her from behind, eyes radiating the same happiness from both of the newlyweds.

Going through all of the pictures, one by one, with a warm smile on her face, Norma accidentally dropped something on the floor. She picked it up, looking at the paper in her hand, the smile now slowly fading away.

A funeral invitation.

His mother's funeral.

Norma couldn't stop staring at the invitation in her hand. She had been caught of guard, and couldn't move. She felt like her body had turned to ice and she forgot how to move her own limbs. This beautiful woman that was his mother, had passed away over 20 years ago. Meaning that he had been quite young at the time, and so had his mother been. Why hadn't he had never mentioned that his mother passed away?

Maybe because it was over 20 years ago. And yes, the two of them hadn't been talking a lot, to be honest, especially about things like that. Maybe he didn't want her to know. Or maybe he didn't like to talk about it, and had decided a long time ago to not bring her up at any point whatsoever.

He was like that, Alex. Trying to shut everything out, not letting anyone in fully enough to let himself be exposed to another person. She had felt like that many times when it came to him. And maybe it was because of his mother? She didn't know. But she wanted to. She thought about bringing the subject up with him, wanting to know what happened to his mother that might had shaped how he was today. Not only does she wants to know because of that, but she wanted to know him more. To understand him better. Everything about this man was interesting to her. She just wasn't sure why that was though.

Norma closed both of the boxes and placed it all in a shelf near the books. She got the boxes out to the dumpster, now walking back into a light, spacious and way cozier room. She was hanging the curtains that she had found in one of the boxes, cream colored drapes adding to the coziness of the house's environment. After few final touches and vacuuming the floor, Norma was standing in the middle of the homey living room, brushing away few strands of hair from her smiling face and letting out a delightful breath. Mission accomplished.

It was starting to get dark outside by the time she finally finished, the newly hanged clock on the wall saying 6:40pm. She only had a few snacks she managed to find in Alex's cupboards during the all day and considering how busy it was, she was now starving. She went into the kitchen, opening the fridge for the fourth time today, trying to turn her imagination on and think of something she could make out of these things. Opening a freezer, just as expected, she found it stuffed with frozen precooked meals.

"Wow, just great. Smells like a heart stroke in early age, Alex." she mumbled under her breath, taking out what she thought looked at least edible with a great intention to turn it into somewhat appropriate dinner, somehow. She knew she was a great cook, as a mom you get plenty of experience and ability to make food out of scraps. She learned it in a hard way since her early childhood, followed by the hell of a life with Sam and always just beer stuffed fridge at their house.

Putting all the so called "ingredients" on the counter, she looked them over, wheels turning in her head. What she could make? After a few minutes she had an eureka moment, what seemed like an inconsistent food now forming a pretty impressive recipe in her mind.

Starting to cut some ingredients she heard her phone ringing. Rushing to the bedroom, she got the mobile out of her bag, now looking at the caller's id.

"Hey, Alex." she answered in a happy voice.

"H-hey, Norma." he cleared his throat.

He stayed quiet for few second, Norma starting to think maybe he hung up.

"Alex are you there? Is something wrong?" she was now starting to get worried, words coming out hurried, "Did something happen?"

"Oh no! No, no, no." he replied quickly, mentally cursing he managed to make her worried for nothing. "Um, I was just calling to, uh to- to check on you, I-I mean if everything is alright? And to ask maybe you need me to buy something on my way home?" he stuttered a bit, clearly feeling slightly embarrassed for calling her with such a lame excuse. "I mean I know the fridge is nearly empty, so would you like me to pick something up?" his voice now a bit bolder as changing the subject.

"Oh, it's fine. I'm fine." she replied, trying to contain a soft smile blossoming on her lips, "I think we're fine for tonight and maybe for tomorrow I could make you a grocery list?"

"Yeah, sure, I will do the shopping tomorrow then." he replied, "Ok, that's all I wanted to ask."

"Hey, Alex." she started in uncertain tone, "When- when are you planning to come home tonight?"

"Am.." he tailed off, not quite ready for the question. His job never had a defined working hours, he always was the one staying in late, till 11pm at least, sometimes even way past midnight, finishing all the paperworks and filling all the files, as coming back to still semi-empty and strange house wasn't something he looked forward to. He only came back there to sleep as doing it in the office didn't seem appropriate. "I think around 8:30? Yeah, something like that, I think. Why?"

"Oh nothing, just asking so I know I still wouldn't be asleep and.. And get scared when you come back or something, you know." she explained, not letting to show how happy she was that he will be back soon.

"Ok then. See you soon at home, bye." he said, the words sounding a bit strange but at the same time also... pleasant?.

"Ok, bye." she said, hanging up with a big same smile she wasn't able to hide now.

She decided to set up the table real nicely, not overdo it but she still wanted the dinner to be nice. She wanted to do this for Alex. He had helped her an awful lot of times, even let her stay at his place, and she wanted to show him how much she appreciated what he had done for her. And the least she could do, was to give him a pleasant dinner after a long day at work. He deserved it after all.

She roamed around the kitchen trying to find plates and glasses. The man only had 2 plates in his kitchen cabin, he hadn't probably had the chance to pack up the rest of the china. Bless him.

Norma decided that lighting up candles or something would make it weird. She had thought about it, dropping the idea immediately as that might just give the wrong impression. And she was almost one hundred percent sure she wouldn't even find candles in his house.

She looked at her finished product, that was the dinner she had prepared for them. It looked very much like a dinner Norma Bates would make, for anyone really. A nice gesture.

Hearing a sound of a car pulling up on the driveway, she hurried to the living room, looking out from the curtains she had just hung up. She saw Sheriff's SUV now parked in front of the house, Alex getting out of it.

For some weird reason, she could feel her heart beat picking up speed as she saw him walking towards the house.

She almost felt… nervously happy.


	6. No one who cooks, cooks alone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!
> 
> After the tragically magnificient Bates Motel final, we are here with our Normero emergency kit to try and heal all the broken hearts, at least a little bit.
> 
> This chapter was supposed to be a little bit longer and out on friday, but we are really sad to see you sad, guys. We really hope this helps, even if it's a teeny-tiny bit.
> 
> Your love is always appreciated and keeps us going with this story! :)
> 
> Sending lots of hugs,
> 
> -IWC

Walking through the door, the first thing that Alex immediately noticed was a welcoming scent of food, a home cooked meal. The smell instantly making his mouth water. Usually when he was working, and with his busy schedule he didn't have time to eat any lunch at work. Or he would just grab something quick and easy. So the smell of a real home cooked meal was more than appealing to him.

"Norma?" he called after her closing and locking the door.

"Oh hey, Alex, you're back!" Norma greeted him from the kitchen. "I was actually just finishing up here, so go sit down, I arranged the table in the living room." her voice trying to outcry the noises of cooking.

"In the living room..?" he frowned, not quite understanding what she was talking about, and how she could had arranged the table there as it was an actual mess with piles of unpacked junk that was his.

"Well yeah," she started, walking from the kitchen into Alex's sight. "I was actually doing a bit of a cleaning today, well, you know, not that I could do anything else." she deadpanned. "So I kinda rearranged your living room and now you can really, like, spend your time there and do stuff, as normal people do in their home?" she joked lamely. But she did have a point.

Alex looked at her, one eyebrow raised, trying to understand if she was messing with him or what. She was.

"Why are you looking at me like that? I'm not kidding, Alex, check it out!" she waved him to follow her to the living room.

Walking into the room, his jaw suddenly dropped. He couldn't even recognize what was now his living room, fully furnished, decorated. Boxes gone. Even with the curtains hanged up. It really looked like a home.

"Woah." he exhaled still not believing what he saw.

"Y-You don't like it?" she asked in a worried tone, "I-I just thought as I was already staying here, I could help you out with all the packing you had left, and I just felt like I owed you something, I mean after everything that you've done for me and for letting me stay here and I thought maybe you would like it that I-" she tried to explain in a hurried voice, now looking down at her arms.

"No, Norma." he cut her off. "I really love this. I don't know how to thank you. You didn't have to do this."

"It's nothing, Alex." her worried face now fading away, "And I quite actually enjoyed it? And as I said, that's the least I could do after everything..."

"Norma, I love it. And I'm really thankful for this." voice gentle, "But I don't want you to think that you owe me anything. Or that I let you stay here because I was expecting something from you." he explained in a low tone, looking her in the eyes. "You really don't owe me anything."

She looked back at him, their eyes meeting each other's. Her blue ones wide and glistening, "Ok, Alex. Thank you." she whispered in soft voice, smiling gently at him.

The moment was ruined by the annoying sound of a timer coming from the kitchen.

"Oh, dinner is ready!" Norma exclaimed, hurrying to the kitchen, leaving Alex standing there.

"You made dinner?" he asked in a louder voice so the question would reach Norma in the kitchen. He clearly knew it was a stupid thing to ask as she already mentioned it and also the whole house was filled with freshly made meal smell.

"Yeah, It's nothing special really" she chuckled lightly while walking into the room.

"Nothing special?" he asked while looking at the huge bowl that she was carrying in her one hand and not much smaller plate in the other. He took a bowl from her hand, helping to bring it to the table. He looked over there, seeing it almost entirely covered with food. How she did it, he would never know. The fridge at his house was literally empty. He was starting to believe this woman had some secret superpowers he wasn't aware of. Not that he was complaining, it's just felt so unusual and overwhelming to have someone make dinner for him. He wasn't used to that. But it did feel nice. It felt like home.

"No, nothing special at all, just some pasta." she explained while arranging the food on the table. "I hope you like pasta?" she looked at his face questioning.

"Yeah, yes, sure. Of course I do." he said, still not believing his luck.

She indeed had made pasta, cooked together with vegetables and a homemade tomato sauce, accompanied by the bowl of salad. It was still a mystery to him. How? She had probably found his beloved freezer. God help, she probably found all his frozen meals. For someone like Norma Bates it was probably a nightmare. He could bet she will later on scold him on this subject.

"It looks amazing. That's a lot." he said while taking his coat off, exposing his sheriff's uniform that Norma always thought looked good on him. Every woman fancied men with uniforms, right?

"Well yeah, you're a big guy." she said, not quite understanding what was leaving her mouth, cringing inside at how it turned out. "I mean, didn't want any of us to still end up hungry." she quickly explained, serving food into the plates. "Yeah, sit down and eat."

Alex tried to contain his grin at the comment she made earlier as that would definitely make it too awkward but still noticing a fair blush on her face. This was gold to him. He sat down, eagerly wanting to devour the food she had made. She did the exact same, also starving from hers today's achievements.

They both stayed quiet. Just enjoying the food and each other's presence. There was some tension in the air, tension and something else they both felt unfamiliar with.

Norma was the first to break the silence off.

"So how was your day?" she asked him. Not because she wanted to make small talk, but she actually wanted to know how his day had been.

"Um," he let out a sound, not being able to respond as he just took a mouthful of pasta. He chewed and swallowed, clearing his mouth to talk, "Uh, it was a pretty calm one, I guess. Nothing special, just a lot of paperwork." he said, taking another bite. "This is actually really good, Norma."

And it really was, he meant it. Alex couldn't remember the last time he tasted something as delicious as this, the pasta with the sauce just melting in his mouth. He never cooked dinner for himself. Well, unless heating up frozen meals counted as cooking.

"It's nothing too fancy, I just threw something together." she waved off shyly as it wasn't a big deal, "But I'm glad you enjoy it." A light chuckle escaping her lips at the sight of Alex chewing with full mouth.

"Is there any news on…" she started, shifting nervously in her chair, "on that guy, Cohen?"

Alex looked up at her, seeing how even mentioning that name made her anxious. He would never forgive that guy for scaring her so much.

"Still trying to trace him down but he was reported seen. We got some information from witnesses that claimed they had noticed the exact same car with a guy that matched the description, outside White Pine Bay." he explained in a low "sheriff's" tone, "We checked it but weren't able to find a trace of him. He's probably trying to run away and now hiding somewhere."

"So he had left the town?" she asked in a hopeful voice, "If he's running away, that means it's safe for me to come home? I mean, it's not likely that he's coming back if the police is looking for him?" wide-eyed look on her face as in waiting for Alex to confirm her assumptions.

"No, no, no." he said in a hurried voice without actually thinking.

He turned his gaze away, now pondering, "No, I- I don't think it's safe, Norma. I mean, he was reported seen here, in Oregon, so it's still near. You don't know what's happening is his head, he, uh, he got an eye on you, Norma, and he might come back to find you." he explained, trying to prove his point to Norma.

"But can't you get like police patrol at my house in case he comes back?" she questioned with a frown.

"I-No-I mean," he stuttered "I mean, I don't think that would stop him. This guy did some serious stuff before, for all I know, and we don't know what he has planned this time. He might be armed, he might break into your house or follow you from there to somewhere more secluded and God knows what then." he explained, looking as the same fear came back to her face, immediately regretting his words. But he can't let her go unless they catch this guy, that's what he told himself.

"I'm sorry, Norma, I did not mean to scare you." he apologized, stern from his voice now gone, "I just think it's best if you, um, if you stay here till we lock him up."

"Ok. That's alright, I understand." she uttered, looking back at her plate, quietly thinking for a moment, "It's just that I… I don't wanna be a burden for you or something." she said in a small voice, eyes avoiding his gaze.

He was now looking at her, his heart breaking for her and at the idea that she would even think of herself as a burden for him.

"Norma, you're not a burden." Alex said, low and gentle voice making her look at him. His left palm raised absentmindedly, fingers brushing on the soft skin of her hand that was positioned on the table. As if burned by her warmth, realizing his actions, he quickly pulled his hand back. "It's not forever. And you're an easy roommate." he joked, trying to dispel the awkwardness.

"Oh, am I?" she chuckled lightly at him, appreciating his affection towards her. She needed it right now. And she didn't really wanted to go home yet. She felt surprisingly comfortable living under the same roof as Alex. And most of all, she felt safe.

"Well, despite the talking in your sleep." he said, trying to look busy while eating his food but still not being able to hide smirk from his face.

He could see her tense at his words, eyes widening a bit. The hand that was holding a fork now freezing midways to her mouth.

"W-What?" she let out a nervous scoff, as if she had no idea what he was talking about, although the voice giving it all away.

"Yes, you talked in your sleep. Must have been a dream." he continued, "What was it about though?" Alex asked, wanting to push the subject even further.

"Really? I don't recall havi-" and it came back to her. The dream. It was now playing in front of her eyes in slow motion, like she was watching a movie and she couldn't press pause. His movements slow and loving, passionate hands savouring her hot, throbbing flesh everywhere. And his name echoing on her lips, craving more by making painfully red marks on his back...

"Yeah, as I said. I don't really remember." she responded quickly, trying to save the situation. She could feel the warmth on her cheeks, they must be red as roses right now of embarrassment.

"You want some more food?" she asked him quickly, before he could say anything else on the same topic.

"No I'm full. Thank you, Norma. This was amazing." he really meant it. He didn't remember the last time he had a meal this good. The last time must have been when his mother was still alive. And that was a long ago, he could barely recall their last meal together that she had made for him.

"Okay, good." she smiled at him, loving the idea of Alex enjoying her food. "So… You got a very impressive movie collection." she said after a pause, looking over to the living room, nodding towards where she had put his movies.

"Well, I love western movies. As you probably know by now." he chuckled.

"Is that why you wanted to be a cop? Because of western movies?" she laughed a little at the idea of a young Alex watching these action movies, wanting to be just as one of those tough guys on the big screen.

"No, Norma, that is not why." he told her in a serious voice. "Well, okay. Maybe a little bit." he laughed at himself making her giggle too.

It felt good to be laughing with someone who wasn't one of her sons. She loved her children more than anything, but sometimes changing environment was refreshing, and to be with other people felt nice. Especially with Alex.

He raised from the table, walking towards the shelf, "Have you ever seen "the Searchers"? That's my favourite one." he waved a movie case in his hand, "60's classic."

"Am, let me see..." she started, narrowing her eyes, trying to make out the cover of the movie. Not that she's going to recognize it anyways, she never watched westerns. "No, I don't think so. Even though I love old movies."

"Yeah, that's a really good one." he said, studying it in his hand for a while. "Um, I thought, maybe you wanna watch it? Like, tonight?" he asked her casually, after a few seconds of silence. "I mean, you said you like old movies, of course depends if you like this genre and-"

"Yeah, okay. Sure." Norma cut him off, agreeing. "It's actually been months since I've seen a good movie." Norma raised from the table, ready to clean the dishes, "It better be good." she giggled. Gazing around the room, one thing caught her eye. "But, hey, Alex… You don't have a couch though." she told him a matter of fact. "It's not like we both are gonna fit in this." finger pointing towards the armchair. 

He looked at the armchair as in actually considering the idea, then looking around the room. Norma could see as his face slightly fell in disappointment.

"But, I-um, I guess we can watch it in your room? Like, move the tv there?" she suggested.

She wanted to watch that movie and she wasn't gonna let her chance slip away on seeing it with Alex just because he didn't have proper furniture.

"Oh, " he raised his eyebrows, "Yeah, that's a great idea! I can set it up." he said in a hurried voice, the excitement that was in his body couldn't be mistaken for anything else.

Despite Norma's protest he helped her clean the table, bringing all the dishes to the kitchen.

"I'll wash it myself." she insisted, "You go set up the sheriff's cinema before I finish here, so we can watch it." she said with a smirk, finger pointing towards the room.

Smiling, she turned away from him, starting to clean the dishes. She didn't notice as he sneaked up behind her, pulling her arm so she would turn around, making her drop the fork she had in her hand. She sucked in a sharp breath as he moved closer to her face, almost making her believe he was going to kiss her. But he didn't. Instead, he went for her cheek, planting a soft peck there.

"Thank you for dinner, Norma." he whispered turning around, going back to living room to set it all for the movie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, you can talk with us on twitter @Incognito_WC  
> Your suggestions, ideas or requests are as always very welcome! :)


	7. I could feel the heart breaking as one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How are you, lovely people?
> 
> We are rushing here with a new chaper of SOYW, hoping this will lighten up your day with some normero sunshine. Cheesy, cheesy.
> 
> As always, we are incredibly grateful for all the reviews and comments on the previous chapter. It means a lot to hear that this helped you to cope with the final in some way. That's what we are aiming for. Because Normero will stay alive as long as we all keep them alive. Whether this is in written fiction or art.
> 
> Hope this brightens up your day, cause your lovely reviews brightens up ours! :)
> 
> Kisses,
> 
> IWC

Norma was standing near the sink, one of her hands placed on her lower belly. Running water from the tap could be heard behind as she was trying to regain her breath back. After staying like that for a few minutes, she shook her head as if trying to get that weird feeling out of her mind, turning around to finish doing the dishes.

Alex unplugged the tv in the living room, lifting it from where it was sitting on the small table and carrying it to the bedroom. There was this old wooden dresser, a perfect place to put it down, with a socket near. He then brought a dvd player, quickly setting it all up as he also wanted to take a shower just before they watch the movie. After finishing up, all devices were now ready, old but gold "the Searchers" in the player, he was ready to wash away day's weariness in a quick shower.

As the warm water was coming down his naked body, he felt his mind wander to the dangerous places. He somehow let his thought slip, thinking of her. Her naked body against his, the feel of her warm flesh pressed up against him. Even though he had only touched her a few times, skin to skin, he knew how soft and youthful her skin was. He usually tried to push these kind of thought out of his head but now, since this woman was currently living with him under the same roof, it became almost impossible at times. He could sense her everywhere: his sheets, blankets, towels, even some of his clothes. His whole house was now soaked up with the sweet scent of her. He wasn't used to having someone around all the time and he always thought it would drive him mad. But he wasn't hating it. More like the opposite, he liked having her around. Today when he had went to work, the idea of having her waiting for him to come back felt thrilling. Almost pleasant. It was something to look forward to after a long shift at work.

He stepped out of the shower, after a good attempt of trying to wash off today's stress and all those confusing thoughts he kept pushing away. Looking around the bathroom he remembered he had forgot to bring a new pair of clothes to change to.

She did the last of the cleaning in the kitchen, still feeling the ghost of his lips on her cheek. They had been so soft against her. It had been painfully short, the smooth feeling of him so close to her. 'Jesus, Norma, it just was his way to thank you for dinner. What are you, a third grade schoolgirl? He was just grateful for a good meal.' she scolded herself mentally, still not helping to feel happy about what had happened. She never thought of Alex, the sheriff bulldog, as someone who would show his thanks in this way. Well maybe in the end, the dinner was actually really good.

Norma took the last look around the kitchen, giving herself a small nod, confirming it was all clean. It looked like someone had never sat a foot in that kitchen before. She walked to the bedroom, opening the half closed door.

"Hey, is it rea-" the last word was half stuck in her throat as she saw him. Alex, standing near the opened drawer, clearly looking for something to wear as all he had on him was a white towel wrapped around his waist.

"Norma-" he started in a warning voice, holding a plaid shirt in his hands.

"Oh shit! Oh, I'm sorry. I-I didn't know- you could have told me you were getting dressed." she stammered, blushing lightly, looking somewhere else but him. "Ok, I-I'm just gonna take a quick shower myself till you...finish here or whatever." she said in a hurried voice, quickly walking to the bathroom, her gaze set straight trying not to look at him.

She locked herself in there, letting out a sigh of relief. The heart was still shaking in her chest. This was the last thing she needed right now, seeing him like that. Those stupid dreams she had no control over were vivid enough themselves and she didn't need any more visual stimulation. As much as she tried not to look, Norma still managed to catch a glimpse of his broad, muscular shoulders and well-toned abs. Of course she knew the man was well built, you could see it even through his sheriff's uniform, his powerful looking biceps always straining against the khaki shirt. She let out another breath, trying to calm her thoughts down and just stop thinking of it. She can't do this right now. She's staying at his place and he is waiting just behind the bathroom door and she can't let her mind wander to those risky places. At least not now. She needed to get that image out of her head somehow. 

Norma stepped into the shower, letting cold water run down her hot flesh, causing a slight shiver go through her spine. It felt refreshing, freezing water streaming down on her, cleaning her mind and her body, fresh scent of soap soaking in.

She got out feeling clean, even though still a bit tired from all of her hard work today and... some excitement? After putting on some lotion, pretty much the only beauty related product she managed to put in her bag, she pulled his shirt over her head, smelling the piece of fabric. He was never getting this shirt back.

"Okay, I'm all done!" she said out loud, opening the bathroom door. No need to make the same mistake again. She stuck her head out carefully to found the room empty. Walking into the bedroom, she heard a sound of someone opening cupboards in the kitchen.

"You know, it's been forever since I saw a good movie." she said in a loud voice for Alex to hear, "I rarely watch movies anymore since we don't have a tv in our house. Norman always watches on his laptop but I don't find it the same thing as watching on a tv, you know?" she kept talking loudly while pacing around the room, folding her clothes and putting them back in her bag.

She didn't hear as Alex had walked back into the room, now standing right in the doorway. His eyes were on her the entire time, trying so hard to not let his gaze fall lower to her vanilla toned legs and failing miserably.

After zipping her bag, she turned around, jumping suddenly as she saw him standing there quietly.

"Jesus, you scared me! You can't sneak up on people like that!" she exclaimed in an annoyed voice.

"Ehm, sorry," he excused himself, trying to come back to reality, "Didn't know that simply walking into the bedroom is sneaking up on people." he scoffed after gaining his focus back.

"Wha-what's that?" she looked at him questionly, pointing to the thing he was holding in his hand.

"Oh, this…" he rolled a bottle of red wine in his palm, I-I had this for a while in my kitchen and, um, and as we don't have any popcorn, I thought this will do?"

"Uu, is the sheriff used to drinking the evening before work?" she mocked with a sly smile on her face. Walking closer, she took the bottle from him, now looking at the label.

"I'm actually off tomorrow." he said in a casual voice, "But, um, I-I thought I would get up early anyways and go do the grocery shopping so it's okay I guess… Um, anyways, should I get the glasses?"

"Yeah, sure!" she replied, not pulling at the thread of him being home tomorrow. Two of them for the whole day. "I unpacked a few wine glasses from one of the boxes today, they should be in the cupboard above the sink. The right one."

He went back into the kitchen to get glasses, her voice reaching him again, "Hey, it actually looks a pretty fancy merlot, are you sure you want to open it now?"

"Yeah, it's whatever. I've had it forever, just no occasions for me to open it anyway." he was back holding two glasses and wine opener.

"Wow, that's sad." she mocked in a low voice, seeing him roll his eyes at her comment. Setting the glassed on the bedside table, he took the bottle from Norma, opening it and pouring some into the glasses.

She sat on the bed, leaning her back against the headboard. Her body was a bit cold from the coolness in the room and her still slightly damped hair. Alex handed her one glass, taking his and getting on the bed next to her. She shifted a bit, taking a sip of her wine, her eyes widening a bit at the taste. She was right, this really did taste expensive.

"So…?" she raised an eyebrow at him after a pause.

"So...?" he mimicked her, "So what?" eyes studying her face.

"Are you gonna press play or not?" she chuckled. He looked distracted. It must be the tiredness from work, she told herself.

Alex looked around for the remote, obviously being busted from his long gaze. He felt awkward, even though he couldn't help himself. He sometimes got lost while looking at her. This would be stupid of him to deny that Norma Bates was a very beautiful woman. Perfect figure, soft looking porcelain skin (he was even more aware of it thanks to those stupid sheer curtains that caused so much trouble), bright smile and piercing blue eyes you could easily drown in. But besides her very attractive feminine features there was also something else that just pulled you in. She was strong. She was a strong, independent woman that was always ready to fight for her family and for what she thought was right. Also, her bitterness and unpredictable freak outs, there was something fascinating about this too. Maybe the fact that no matter how hard, unbreakable and sarcastic she tried to act, there was always that softness in her, carefulness and… fragility? She always tried so hard to stay strong, to look strong, but she wasn't made of steel. And her vulnerability sometimes showed off. Maybe that's why Alex felt caught in her world. He wanted to do everything to protect her at those times.

He pressed play to finally start the movie, resting himself against the cushions. Feeling a bit stiff in his body as the film watching situation still felt a bit weird- two people, that once were each other's least favorite person in the whole town, now casually watching a movie while lying in one bed, drinking a bottle of a 1986 merlot. He didn't know how they ended up here, and probably neither did she. But it felt nice, there was no need for him to deny it anymore. As much as he tried to convince himself he didn't need company or friends, small talks and few beers with his co workers and occasional one-night stands being all the social interactions, he sometimes did feel lonely. That feeling merely there, pushed back as soon as it crossed his mind, but still existent. It felt great to have someone to talk to, to watch a movie or have a dinner with. Someone who made you look forward coming home after work.

The film was rolling, two of them half lying on the bed, sipping on their wine, gaze strictly fixed on the screen. It was clear that much effort was put in trying to concentrate on what's happening there. 1868, West Texas. Norma had never been into westerns at all, although she liked old movies so she immediately recognized Vera Miles from a few Hitchcock's movies.

She yawned, feeling the exhaustion took over but she didn't want to sleep yet. Trying to distract herself, she gulped down the wine that was left in her glass, now leaving it empty. Alex took the bottle, holding it with a questioning look.

"Yeah, go ahead. it's not like I have anywhere to be tomorrow." she replied with a chuckle, holding her glass, waiting for him to refill it. "So… You were in the marines, weren't you? Was this also inspired by some movies?" she positioned herself, leaning back on the cushions.

Alex did the same thing, refilling his glass and settling back. "Well, I would lie if I said that Clint Eastwood in 'Heartbreak Ridge' hadn't inspired me in some way." he laughed, making Norma giggle too. "Anyways, how did you know I was in marines?"

"Oh, as I was unboxing those things today I found this old wooden box full of photos." she said, taking a quick sip. "I mean, not that I was going through your stuff or anyth- well, literally I was but that box just accidentally opened and few pictures fell out so-" she tried to explain herself not wanting Alex to think that she was studying his every personal belonging she found in those boxes or something like that. "And I have to admit you were a very cute kid. Also, it's so strange that your mom let you use mascara from such an early age." she wondered out loud, trying to keep her face serious.

"Ha ha." he deadpanned, "Well, I was cursed with those hispanic genes, there's nothing I could do about that."

"Pfft, yeah right. It's probably so hard being cursed with beauty?" she mocked, then suddenly shifting nervously at her own comment, taking gulp. "Um, so, your mother, she's from where? Spain?"

"No, Cuba actually." Alex said with a low voice, keeping his eyes on the screen. No matter how much time that had went by, after losing his mom, he always felt uncomfortable talking about it. Not because he didn't miss or stopped loving her. Simply because he didn't like to bring up memories that was painful for him. It made him feel weak and he wasn't someone to show his vulnerable side, and especially not to her.

"I saw a picture of her too, she is a gorgeous woman." Norma smiled a little, remembering that adorable photo she found, his mother in that beautiful flowy white dress looking like lily.

"Yeah, she was…" he said, gazing away, not wanting her to look him into his eyes. Too afraid she would see every emotion that he felt right now.

"Oh.." she finally remembered, feeling like a complete idiot, "Oh, Alex, I'm so sorry..." Norma apologized, looking at his unreadable face.

"It's okay, Norma. She's been gone for a long time now." he exhaled, still keeping his eyes away from her.

He shifted, setting his glass of wine next to the bed, just so that she wouldn't see him. He imagined she would drop the subject. But this was Norma Bates after all. She did stay quiet for some time, watching him, not knowing what to say. What are you supposed to say when someone you care about is showing their vulnerable side? Her heart ached for him. His body language showed her how much he felt affected by the topic she brought up. But she wanted him to open up to her. Not because she was desperate to cure her curiosity but because she it could help. Opening up to someone, letting your vulnerability in and sharing your pain helps you to heal.

"What… what happened to her?" Norma finally broke the silence, immediately regretting her question and how it insensitive it might have sounded to him. Maybe it wasn't the greatest idea.. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, Alex, I don't know what I was thinking. That's none of my business, I just-" she apologised, shaking her head with a hand on her forehead, feeling stupid.

"Norma, it's okay." he repeated himself. Meaning it. Even though he didn't feel like talking about it.

"Okay..." she tailed off, thinking he would leave it like that. He didn't owe her an explanation and she wasn't expecting one.

"Suicide." he said in a low and deep voice, rolling his thumbs. "She's, uh... she's been

dead 22 years. At first it was endless fight between her and my dad, then she just became distant. Tired and drowsy all the time. Lots of pills near her bedside, endless piles of small colorful tablets… She wasn't leaving her room, she wasn't eating. Completely apathetic to everything around. And I saw her sinking down into that abyss. I saw my father drowning her in it. And I did nothing. I didn't know what to do… I should have helped her, I could have saved her but-"

"Alex…" she was lost for words. It hurt hearing him blame himself. She didn't know what to say or how to act. She didn't feel awkward but she also didn't wanna say anything she would regret later. Anything stupid or incoherent. So she leaned slowly, gently taking his right hand in hers. She caressed his fingers between her own soft ones, letting the warmth of her touch replace the words.

"Yeah, that's my sad story." he said looking at her. If anyone could relate to his pain, it was her. Even if they hadn't been through the same experiences, both of them walked through hell.

"Life is so hard, isn't it?" she whispered, more of a statement than it was a question. Her petite hands looked even smaller when they were next to his much larger ones. His hands weren't as soft as hers, she could feel the roughness of them. But they were warm.

"Sometimes." he looked at her.

She wanted to comfort him. Even though he didn't need it, really. No one had comforted him when it came to the loss of his mother or anything else. His entire life he had been dealing with it himself. And he had accepted that it most likely would always be like that His father always used to say it's what strong man do. They swallow down the pain and sorrow, arm themselves with steel that just leaves no way for any emotions to get through to you. Emotions that could make you feel. But what his father didn't say is that same steel would never let those emotions, the ones that are born inside you, get out.

So when Norma reached out to hug him, he was surprised. But also relieved. Her arms went around his neck, pulling him close to her body, pressing against his hard chest. His arms didn't react right away, still caught off guard by her impulsive hug. And when he felt her pull away slightly, he reacted. Drawing her body closer to his again. Feeling the warmth, that was being created by their hot bodies against each other. He nuzzled his face against her neck, not really thinking about it. It felt natural to him in some way. Being this close to her, not being too afraid of showing her that he ached too sometimes. His hands were resting on her small waist, trying to pull her even closer as if there was any space left in between them.

"It's not your fault, Alex. It's not." she whispered against his ear, rubbing his back in soft circles with her left arm.

He didn't answer, he didn't have to.

She pulled back slowly, stopping her face near his cheek,planting a soft peck there. Now pulling back completely she looked at him, smiling lightly. He smiled back. And even though he had felt the sadness coming back to him just a few minutes ago, not that it had ever left him. But that emptiness he felt every time he thought of the loss of his mother. It somehow felt better when she smiled at him. Like her smile could fix his bruised heart his mother's death had caused him. Like it secretly said 'you will be alright' and he believed it. He hadn't really cared before talking to anyone about his loss, rarely even mentioning his mother if it wasn't necessary. But somehow, discussing it with her felt relieving. Like a big burden had been lifted off of his shoulders. He could finally let everything go. Everything that had build up in his mind over a time, growing bigger and bigger, making him exhausted. He let himself break that steel inside him open. To expose that painful wound and let some fresh air in, finally allowing it to start healing.

"We should probably rewatch the movie." Norma chuckled, noticing that the movie was still rolling and they hadn't paid any attention to it.

"Yeah.." Alex agreed, laughing softly.

And so the moment was gone. But it was alright, it felt somehow better that way. She would've found out sooner or later.

They started to rewatch the movie, this time actually focusing on it. Norma was settled comfortably against the bed. Alex gazed at her, he could tell that she was tired- eyes struggling to stay open and her breathing steady.

He continued to watch the movie, sipping on his wine that was left in the glass. Of course he could now defend himself and say that this sudden emotional moment between two of them was completely encouraged by the consumption of alcohol. But he knew it wasn't true. This happened because he wanted. He wanted for once in his life to drop his defensive stoic shield and open up to someone. And he wanted that someone to be her…

His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden feel of weight on his shoulder. He turned his head to see her resting against his shoulder. Her mouth was slightly open, her breathing slow and deep. He tucked her in carefully, not wanting to wake her up. After finishing the last few minutes of the movie, he turned off the tv. Carefully, trying not to wake her, he lied down, getting under the covers himself. Norma turned a bit in her sleep, curling closer to him, one arm across his torso, nuzzling her face against the shoulder, exhaling deeply.

The room was illuminated by the light of the moon through the window. Making sure she was still asleep, he slightly lifted his head, planting a light kiss at the top of her head. Resting his head back to the pillow, he watched her peacefully sleep for sometime till drifting into the sleep himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, you can contact us on twitter Incognito_WC with your ideas, suggestions and request :)


	8. Fuel to fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good morning/day/evening everybody,
> 
> Chapter 8 is here, a weekly dose of Normero! Again, we are incredibly grateful for all the reviews and nice words and they motivate us so much :)
> 
> Also, as someone asked for, we now have curiouscat (incognito_wc) for your questions and ideas, so if you're hiding in the shadow same as us, feel free to state your ideas anonymously there :)
> 
> We are so thankful that this story gets some love from you and we will continue as long as we feel needed.
> 
> Tons of love,
> 
> IWC

It was around 4am when Norma woke up, opening her eyes a bit to see if the room was still filled with darkness. As her body came back to senses from the deep sleep, she tensed at the feeling of weight around her slim waist. Something that was radiating the warmth to her bare flesh where her shirt was rolled up. Slow and steady, his breathing tickled the back of her neck, sending waves of goosebumps down her whole body. She quickly realised that the weight was from Alex’s arm, wrapped around her waist from behind with her back cradled against his chest. She placed her palm on top of his hand where it was resting against the naked skin of her belly, rising and falling along with her every breath. Relaxing into the touch, she closed her eyes, sinking back into sleep again.

Alex was woken up by something tickling his nose. Blinking a few times, a small ray of sunshine coming through the window and making it hard for him to fully open his eyes, he finally made out the blonde curls that were just mere inches away from his face. He shifted a bit, feeling his other hand brushing against something soft and warm, his body tensing when he finally realised what it was. Norma moved a bit in her sleep, pressing her back against him even more. Pushing her body closer to his. Carefully, without waking her up, he removed his hand from around her, finally exhaling the breath he had been holding it. He lied there for a few more minutes, just watching her sleep, white sheets wrapped around her pale skin that was now glowing in the morning sun.

Rising from the bed quietly, not wanting to wake her up yet, he went into the kitchen. Turning on the coffee machine and setting two cups on the table, he glanced at the clock on the wall, not believing his eyes. 11:43am. He never slept that long. Well, at least he hadn’t for a long time and without the help of sleeping pills. He felt well rested, he could actually feel his muscles feeling completely relaxed. It was usual for him to wake up when it was still dark. Not that he was ever well rested, but simply because waking up every hour was even more tiring and felt like a waste of time.

Caught up in his thoughts he didn’t hear Norma walking into the kitchen. Wrapped in a sky blue satin robe, a wild mess of blond curls around her face, one hand rubbing her heavy, sleepy eyes.

“Good morning.” she yawned, as a graceful cat stretching her body in a doorway. 

“Oh, hey, you’re up.” he smiled at her, “Well, it’s only what… almost 12pm?” 

“Oh my… I never sleep that long. Ever. I always get up around 7am no matter if I have any work at the motel that day or not.” she tried to defend herself, “It must be something about this place. Good sleeping aura that you have here, Sheriff.” she chuckled.

“Yeah, probably.” he said with a smile, taking one of the cups from the table. “The coffee is ready, if you want some?” he asked her, as if he hadn’t already made it ready for two cups for both of them.

“Yes, sure. Thank you.” she replied, walking to sit at the table.

He walked to the fridge, opening it, “Milk?”

“Would be great.” she could not drink coffee without milk, period. 

“And I’m afraid this milk is actually all we have left in this fridge.” Alex said, shaking a half empty carton box of milk in his hand. 

“Yeah, there’s definitely some grocery shopping that needs to be done or we will starve to death otherwise.” she raised her eyebrow at him. Norma Bates was not used to an empty fridge in her adult days and she was not gonna start having one now.

He settled a cup of coffee in front of her, pouring himself some. “Or we always can live on those delicious pre-cooked meals that I have in my freezer…” he teased, knowing how exactly Norma felt when it came to his choice of food. She wasn’t a fan.

“I don’t know what’s worse, starving to death or eating that crap.” she scoffed, giving him a look. “Have you ever walked in the mall except from the frozen foods section? Like, you would be amazed what people have there, there are these things called vegetables, that you can…”

“Funny.” he deadpanned, “I was actually planning to go pick up some stuff today. Anything in particular you want me to buy?” he asked, taking a sip from his coffee. 

“Well, I was thinking about making a turkey pot pie for dinner today,“ she started, narrowing her eyes while trying to list all the ingredients in her head. “So it would be great if you bought turkey meat, some carrots, celery. Ahm, what else… Oh, green beans, butter, a few onions…

“Ok, there’s no way I’m gonna remember all of this. I’ve already forgotten the first thing you said.” he looked at her confused.

“Turkey, Alex. Turkey pot pie needs turkey meat. I know, who would have thought.” Norma just really enjoyed teasing Alex today. “Ok, I will write you down a list then.”

“Ok, great.” he said, sipping his coffee and looking around the kitchen. “I had some notes and a pen somewhere around here..” he stood up, opening the drawer under the kitchen sink. “Oh, here it is.”

He walked back, handing her a piece of paper and a pen.

“So, did you like the movie yesterday?” he asked while watching her list down the things on the note, biting on the pen whenever she tried to remember something they needed.

“Oh, yeah, it was great.” she smiled at him, quickly turning her gaze back to the paper. She couldn’t remember half of it.

“Really?” he smirked with the cup against his mouth, “So did you saw the second part of it in your dreams or what exactly? Or maybe you just imagined the movie with your eyelids closed?” 

She raised her eyes at him as a child caught lying. Seeing his wry smile, she couldn’t help but to burst into laughter making Alex chuckle too.

“Well, I still enjoyed the first part of it.” she said with a shrug, handing him the piece of paper. “Here, I think that’s it.”

Alex scanned the list with his eyes, reading every word in his head and already imagining how long it will take for him to gather all those things at the grocery shop. 

“What is this… all-purpose flour? Does flour has any other purposes besides for cooking?” he frowned at her. “And where exactly it this to be found at the grocery shop… chicken broth cubes? Is it somewhere in the meat section?”

She looked at him letting out a long sigh, burying her face in her palm. ‘Men’ she thought. 

“Ok, I will go with you.” she informed him, standing up dramatically from the chair. 

“Norma, I’m pretty sure I can handle it myself.” He tried to defend his honor, scanning through the list again.

“Yes, I’m sure you can, Alex. The problem is, I can’t wait here without food for a week for you to come back from that shop.” she raised an eyebrow at him, lips pressed in a thin line.

“It’s not the best idea for you to go, Norma. You know, with everything that’s going on right now.” he said, not wanting to approach the subject directly.

“Well, you’re the sheriff, aren’t you? The big daddy of White Pine Bay?” she gave him a look, waving her hand around. “I’m sure I’ll be just fine.”

“God, you’re stubborn.” he let out a deep sigh, pinching his nose bridge, “Are you sure about this?” eyes back, scanning her face now.

“Alex, I can’t hide here forever. I’m gonna go nuts. And he’s probably not even in town, as you mentioned before.” she explained, pausing for a second, thinking, “And… and I feel safe with you.” 

Norma Bates had never felt safe with a man before. She did feel somehow safe when Norman or Dylan was around, but this wasn’t like this at all. There was this odd feeling in her stomach when she was around Alex that she couldn’t quite explain. It was like she wasn’t afraid of anything or anyone. She tried to believe it was because of his status, because he was a trained policeman, always armed. It was his duties, keeping the peace, law enforcement, protection of people. Although somewhere deep down she knew way too well that it wasn’t just that.

His lips curled in a slight smile at her words, feeling the masculinity in his body overflow. She had told him that before, the day he was moving out of her motel. Still, hearing it again was really pleasing because that was everything he had ever wanted for her. Also, he knew it wasn’t easy for her, the woman that was so stubborn and relying only on herself, to admit that.

“I’m just gonna go and get ready.” she cut off the silence, standing from the chair. Without waiting for any response or Alex’s protest, she left the kitchen, going back into the bedroom to get dressed. Checking through her bag, she pulled out a baby pink dress, straightening it out on the bed. It was probably the last piece of clothing she had in that bag but she was pretty happy she managed to throw in some good looking clothes even in such a rushed and stressful moment. She quickly changed, putting on some mascara, fingers brushing through her loose wavy locks. 

Alex was done washing the cups, putting them back in the cupboard as Norma walked back into the kitchen.

“Ok, we can go.” she announced, “And I think I’ll have to do some laundry when we’re back. I’m actually really impressed you have washing machine.” 

“Yes, Norma, and I even know how to use it.” he said in a blank tone, rising his eyebrows at her, walking towards the door, “Ok, I’m gonna go and change quickly so we can go.”

“Woah, you keep surprising me, Sheriff!” her exclamation reaching him from the kitchen behind.

 

***

 

They pulled into the mall’s parking lot half an hour later, parking the SUV at the corner of the building. Considering it was the afternoon, the place, surprisingly, wasn’t that busy. 

Walking between the aisles, with Alex pushing the cart around as Norma grabbed everything from the list, studying the labels and discussing some of the products with him. Most of the time he had no knowledge about what she was grabbing from the different store sections, just nodding his head as in agreement. He never really cared about food, any kind of cheese was cheese and any flour was flour for him. He never made an effort to teach himself how to cook properly, considering it a waste of time, which as a sheriff you don’t have that much. But also, it was no point in making dinner just for yourself, so that’s why premade meals or eating at cafes was his choice.

“What else do we need?” Norma questioned, eyes wandering on his face like he had the answer to her question. He didn’t.

“I don’t know, do we have everything from the list?” he asked, noticing how they were passing by the frozen food section. Remembering he was out on those he decided to grab a few more- it was nothing like a delicious home cooked meal, but he can’t get used to them too much. And yes, he knew very well how she felt about those, of course he was aware himself that it wasn’t healthy or nutritious. But he was a grown man, he could make his own decisions. As he opened the freezer, reaching for boxes there, he could already feel her eyes burning into his back.

“Alex, what are you doing?” Norma asked him in serious tone, arms crossing on her chest, rising an eyebrow at him. 

“What? I need to eat something at work.” he defended himself, taking half a dussin of them and walking towards the cart.

“Put them down.” she ordered, giving him a dead look.

“Norma…” he sighed, closing his eyes at her demanding tone. He wasn’t really looking for an argument with her right now.

“Do you even know how they are made, Alex?! Are you tired of your life?” she raised her voice in annoyance, taking few boxes from his hands and putting them back. “You’re not going to poison yourself with this crap in my presence. I can cook more food for dinner so that you could bring it to work. Put them down and let’s go. Now.” 

He rolled his eyes at her, putting back the boxes into the freezer. There was no need to have a scene of getting a lesson about his eating habits in the middle of the mall, especially when you’re the sheriff of the town. But the idea of eating her delicious food during his lunch break at works made him drop it and don’t go further into arguing. 

“I’m gonna go and get some coffee whiteners, be right back.” he said giving her a dead look, feeling like a child that was just scolded by his mother. For god’s sake, he never even whitened his coffee, he just felt embarrassed and wanted to get away from her judging gaze for a second.

“Ok..?” Norma nodded, narrowing her eyes at him. She knew he always drinks his coffee black. Men are actually like children sometimes, she thought chuckling to herself. 

While waiting for him, she decided to grab some vegetables, some vitamins to go with the meals she was planning to prepare. Food was a big part of her life, she loved cooking and of course she secretly loved when other people appreciated her skills, even though she was always shy, waving away as it wasn’t a big deal. So she really had no problem with making him lunches for work, the idea even sounded lovely, especially if that meant he would stay away from the frozen dinners, at least for when she’s around.

“Norma, is that you?” a familiar voice from behind interrupted her thoughts. She recognized it way too well, mentally cursing at her luck. She turned around to see George standing there holding a basket in his hand. Probably doing some grocery shopping himself, even though the outfit, suit and a tie, looking a bit ridiculous for such a task. 

“Oh.. hey, George.” she greeted him with an awkward forced smile.

“What are you doing here?” he smiled at her, over whitened teeth blinding Norma’s eyes.

“Well, I guess there’s not much to do here besides shopping.” she pointed to her shopping cart, letting out a fake laugh at the absurd question.

“Oh yeah, right.” he laughed along. “How are you? Looking good.” he observed, letting his eyes travel up and down her body. 

“Ehm, thank you, George. I’m actually good, how about you?” she said trying to sound as she was interested, feeling a bit uncomfortable under his gazing look.

“I’m doing alright. A lot of business these past two weeks so been flying here and there a lot. Finally home though.” he said, letting out a relieved sigh, “Oh, and I actually went by your house yesterday, thought you might wanted to have dinner or something. Unfortunately, couldn’t find you there. And the motel was also closed. ” he gave at her a questioning look. 

“Oh. Well, yeah, about that. Um, I’m not currently staying at my house.” she said, wanting to end the conversation without getting into any details. And of course she knew it was impossible. 

“Oh really? Why?” he frowned at her.

“There’s… uhm… There was some road works being done there, and I think they- they accidentally cut off some cables or something.” she explained, her eyes wandering around the aisle. She certainly couldn't tell him what was going on, since Alex had specifically told her not to tell anyone until the police gets the work done. “Uhm, so yeah, the house and the motel has no electricity and god knows when they’re going to fix it.” she said, making her tone sound as if she was annoyed with that whole situation she had just made up.

“Have they even started fixing it? I didn’t see any workers there yesterday.” 

“W-well, probably not yet. Even though I called them, but you know how everything is in this town. “ she chuckled nervously.

“Oh, sure I know. I can make some calls to speed that up. It’s great having some connections.” he winked at her with a playful smile. “So where are you staying then? King’s motel?”

“No... No, not King’s. I’m actually staying at a friend’s place.” she said, hoping he wouldn’t be that curious to ask more for that matter.  
“Yeah? Is it ok?” he looked at her, clearing his throat, “I mean, you know that you can stay at my place right? I have just renovated guest bedroom at my house. It has separate bathroom in it. With a pretty impressive jacuzzi, if you ask me.” he tilted his head with a slight smirk, studying Norma’s face for any trace of impression.

“Oh, that’s very kind of you but-” her words cut off as Alex approached them from behind.

“Ok, I got the whiteners, are we done?” he said, putting the items in the cart now noticing the man standing next to Norma. “Is everything alright?” he asked in a concerned voice, eyes moving between her and the guy in front of her, frowning. The man was standing near Norma as Alex now moved closer to her, the subconscious instinct of protectiveness.

“Oh. Yeah, uhm- well, Alex, this is George, and George, this is Alex.” she introduced them awkwardly waving her hand between them.

The men nodded at each other. Alex’s mouth in a thin line, gaze firmly fixed on George’s face, scanning him carefully. 

“So, what do you think about my suggestion?” he asked again, turning his eyes back to her face, ignoring Alex’s presence, even though he was very much aware of it.

Alex lingered around uncomfortably, feeling out of place, but something inside was not letting him to just walk away and leave them talking. He now took in the man’s appearance, trying his best to keep the judgemental look out of his face. Black suit, clearly the expensive one, with a white shirt underneath and a burgundy tie. Judging from the neatly polished shoes and immaculately styled hair, the man clearly was the one to spend a great amount of time and money on his appearance. Probably around the same age as Alex himself, only a few wrinkles around the eyes and on the forehead, wide grin revealing a row of blinding teeth.

“Well, I’m really grateful for it, but as I said, I, um-” she shifted nervously, smiling, “I have a place to stay. But thank you.” 

“Oh, come on, Norma.” he chuckled, stepping closer to her, “I’m almost sure your friend doesn’t have to offer a king size bed and 64-inch plasma tv?” he tilted his head at her, flirty grin playing on his lips as he gently touched Norma’s upper arm.

This man’s actions were clearly giving away his attraction to Norma and for some reason it made Alex’s jaw clench. Unwelcomed feeling of a heat was building up in his gut as he opened his mouth before thinking. 

“Well, you’re absolutely right, I don’t have that.” he said in a flat tone, trying to mask the bitterness. He stepped closer to Norma, seeing George drop his hand from touching her arm. Not taking any sort of shit from this man whatsoever. 

“Oh.” he frowned, eyes travelling between Norma and Alex, back and forth. “So, are... are you staying with him?” he asked, trying keep his voice casual and unaffected.

“Um, yeah, I am.” she confirmed, a bit surprised at Alex for stepping into the conversation out of a sudden. “He… he really helped me out in this whole situation. And his place isn’t that bad as I thought.” she joked, trying to lighten up the situation. Although, George’s face stayed stern.

“Oh, I see.” he bit out a harsh snap, rising his chin a bit.

“Woah, it’s almost 2pm already.” Norma said in a surprised tone, looking at her hand watch, the material thing saving her as always. “I think we should get going, I still have some things to do.” she looked at Alex and then back at George, “Well, it was nice meeting you. And thanks for your suggestion.” she replied gently. She was flattered that he had offered, she really was. But she also knew that George was very obviously into her and he wasn’t even trying to hide it. So he would expect something from her, maybe try to move things forward. He was a good guy, George. Smart, sophisticated, kind. But his affection and attention for her sometimes felt suffocating. Especially when she couldn’t respond to those feelings the same way, she was never romantically interested in him, nothing more than just friendly feelings and a bit of...pity?

Norma had been watching the two men interact with each other, and she could sense Alex’s stiffness. There was this dark glowering look on his face, mouth pressed in a thin line, the way he moved closer, definitely being protective of her. Seeing the way he had responded when George had touched her, was almost complementary to her. And no matter how horrible the idea sounded in her head, she wanted to push it further. She wanted to see if it really was what it looked like. Jealousy.

“Goodbye George, take care of yourself.” she smiled at him, stepping forward. And then she hugged him, surprising both of them with her bold move. She went in for a simple hug really, but George wanted to take advantage of the situation. He pulled her close to him, hands travelling on her lower back, smelling her hair in the process. Norma hadn’t meant for it to be so intimate as it became now. She really just wanted to give him a quick hug, to push Alex’s buttons. To get as some sort of confirmation that for what she thought she had noticed earlier. But standing there, feeling George’s breath on the side of her neck just felt awkward and uncomfortable. She pulled away when she felt him burying his face closer, letting go of him. 

The unexpected hug left Alex frozen into the place. Although he ensured himself it was probably just a friendly gesture, but he saw how George had taken it. He saw how his hands wrapped around her waist, dangerously low, mouth curling in a wry triumphant smile. Anger coursed his veins, his jaw clenching hard, almost painful. His own breathing becoming harsh and shallow, fingers unconsciously balling into fists, twitching. All he wanted was to punch this guy in the face for even daring to touch her like that. But he was relieved when he saw her own expression by the very unpredictable closeness George had brought to the hug. He calmed himself down a bit, seeing her pull away from his embrace.

“Norma, we should go.” Alex said quickly trying his best to look nonchalant. Lightly placing his hand on the small of her back, he nodded towards the register. He knew it was a selfish move, but he didn’t want this man near her anylonger. 

Norma looked at Alex, even his always so stoic expression giving away the irritation. She felt some regret about doing this to him, but… they weren’t seeing each other, so she hadn’t done anything bad, right? 

“Yes, let’s go.”

“I guess I’ll see you around Norma!” George called out. She just turned around and gave him a small smile, not wanting to give him any answer. 

They stood at the register, patiently waiting in line for their turn. Norma observing Alex’s face carefully as he stood there not saying a word, eyes everywhere but on her.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, raising her eyebrow at him.

“Yeah, why are you asking?” he answered immediately, too fast to sound believable. Jesus, he had to stop. It wasn’t him, he never got jealous. Ever. Now looking at her, his face softening a bit as he saw her light smirk..

“Ok..” she narrowed her eyes at him a little bit. “No, nothing. You just seem… quiet.” she replied shrugging. 

“Well, grocery shopping is definitely an exhausting experience as I can tell now.” he said, stretching his neck side to side. “And I’m starving. We should probably stop at some place to eat on our way back? You also haven’t had anything for breakfast.”

“Yeah, well it’s obviously too early for dinner yet.” she said, checking the time at her watch, “We can do that. I had even forgotten how hungry I am till you mentioned it.” she chuckled softly looking at him.

They left the mall, heading towards the car. The sky was now gloomy, dark clouds at the horizon promising storm or at least a rain. Occupied with putting all of the grocery bags to the back of the SUV, they didn’t notice a pair of eyes watching them. Dark gaze from old grey truck parked at the very corner of the parking lot, following their every move till they were done with the task, getting in the car and driving off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's be friends on twitter @Incognito_WC ! :)


	9. This could be beautiful

"I think… I think I will have pancakes with, um... maple syrup and strawberries." she decided after a long consideration and looking through the menu carefully. "Kind of a late breakfast." she smiled at the waitress, a round faced lady in her 60's, who wrote down the order on her little notepad.

"And you, Alex?"

"I will have a sloppy joe, please." It didn't take long for him to decide on his meal as it was usual of him to have the same thing every time he stopped by this place.

"And any drinks?" the woman asked, raising her eyes from the notepad in her hands to look at Norma.

"Um, apple juice for me is fine." she replied without much of a thinking this time.

"And coffee for me. Black." Alex closed the menu, handing it back to the waitress. "Thank you, Rose."

After a few minutes the waitress was back with the coffee and a glass of apple juice, settling the drinks on the table. Norma sipped on her juice, looking through the window to see that the same dark clouds slowly approaching, wind rising gradually.

"Good thing we parked near the entrance as it seems like a pretty serious storm is heading our way." she said in a serious tone, eyes scanning the sky with a slight concern. "Damn, I'm not sure I closed the kitchen window before leaving…" she turned her head back to Alex, eyes going wide.

"Norma! Really?" he asked in a stern voice, frowning at her. Seeing her body twitch a bit at his words snapping at her, it made him regret his harsh tone immediately. He didn't mean it to come out that harsh, his face softening quickly, "Well, it's fine. If it rains, it will probably rain on the kitchen's counter which is water resistant, anyways."

She looked at him with big puppy eyes, lips pressed in a thin line. The expression then began to change, a slight grin forming on her face, bursting into laughter a second later. "Got you!" she giggled, exhaling a long breath to calm herself down.

"Wow, very funny, Norma." deadpan look on his face, clearly not enjoying the joke as much as she did.

"Oh, come on!" she tilted her head at him, "And you kind of ruined my joke, you didn't even get mad-"

"Alex?" A voice came from behind, cutting Norma's words off. She turned her head to see a tall slim redhead in a red coat, sashaying towards their table. "Oh, heyy. What are you doing here?" The woman's voice high pitched, scarlet lips stretching into a wide grin.

"Hello, Rebecca." Alex replied in low voice, shifting a bit. "Oh nothing just- just having lunch." he said, eyes travelling to Norma and back to the redhead next to him.

Norma sat there scanning the woman, way too strong scent of perfume poisoning the air around them. Their gaze meeting, she felt as the woman's judging look travelled down her body.

"Oh. Who is your friend?" Rebecca arched her eyebrow, voice flat even though the fake looking wry smile, still playing on her lips.

"Um, I'm Norma Bates." she replied, trying to make her tone sound somewhat normal, "I own the Bates Motel down the road."

"Oh, that one, yeah… Well, so sad that the new bypass is planned in works." Rebecca gave her a somewhat sad look, tilting her head a bit, "I love small businesses, it's cute that people try even when it's beyond their abilities."

"Norma, this is Rebecca," Alex cleared his throat, hand gesturing towards the woman, "Um, she works at the WPB bank."

Norma gave the lady a fake smile, nodding at the introduction.

"I haven't seen you around for a while, Alex." Rebecca's face curled back into the flirtatious smirk from previous. "Oh, too bad I'm only here for a take out, bit in a hurry frankly." she explained in a regretful tone.

"Oh, yeah. Sad." Norma snapped in a flat tone, before she could think better of it. The tone of her response quickly attracted Alex's attention as he gave her a questioning look. "I-I mean, you're… probably busy. With all the work and stuff. Am...sad you can't even get a quick break." she rambled shrugging a bit towards Rebecca, feeling Alex's confused gaze glued to the side of her face.

"Well, that's true. But that's what happens when you are successful." she quickly gave Norma a sly smirk, turning her eyes back to Alex. "So will you maybe stop by after this…" she waved her hand towards them, 'business meeting or whatever. I have some papers for you to sign, related to your checking account."

Norma shifted a bit in her seat, nervously sipping on her juice while looking at the interaction between Rebecca and Alex.

"Ok, well, I will stop by when I have time. Or just mail them to my office." he said with a neutral tone, ignoring the flirtatious tone in Rebecca's voice.

"Well, enjoy your lunch. See you, Alex." she smiled at him then giving Norma one last look. A dreamy smile changing into the forced grin through clenched teeth, eyes narrowing a bit.

Just the second Rebecca walked away, the waitress was back to the table with their meals. Norma got a mouthful bite of her pancakes, getting more on her fork, now inspecting the syrup covered piece of strawberry.

"So… You and your banker get along quite well." she said after after a pause, clearing her throat. She wasn't even sure why she brought up this subject, immediately realising how stupid that remark should have sounded and shoving another bite in her mouth.

"Yeah, well, I've known her for a while." Alex replied in a nonchalant voice, not quite sure where she was going with it.

"She seems like a … like a very friendly worker." she said while toying with her food on the plate, drawing circles with the syrup with her fork. "I wonder if she's so friendly with all of her clients." Norma could see in her peripheral vision as he frowned a bit at her words.

Alex sat here, watching her messing the syrup around her plate, trying to figure out what was happening. Why she suddenly acted so weird and what was behind all those comments? And then a faint idea crossed his mind. Was she… Was Norma Bates jealous? The thought caused a slight smirk appear on Alex's face that didn't go unnoticed by Norma.

"What?" she raised her one eyebrow at him, "What's so funny?"

"No, nothing." he was caught off guard, his eyes now meeting her confused look, "You- you got syrup on the corner of your lips." he quickly replied, pointing towards her mouth. Her tongue darted out, licking her lips, such an innocent act still sending shiver down his body, making Alex drop his gaze to his plate.

"Well, now I know who the hell you sleep with." she let out a forced chuckle, making Alex choke on his bite. "Oh, come on. Admit that the two of you are sleeping together, it's obvious!" she said in a teasing tone, looking at him with widened eyes, sly and curious smirk playing on her lips.

Alex coughed, looking around awkwardly as Norma's exclamation attracted a few glances from the people sitting at the table nearby.

"Norma-" he started as he had no idea what she was talking about, seeing her lean on the table.

"Oh, come on, don't lie. So am I right?" she asked narrowing her eyes a bit, voice a whisper. "You have to be sleeping with someone all this time. Is she the one?"

He sat there saying nothing for a second, just staring at the curious expression on her face. "Ok, well-" he started, letting out an awkward chuckle, "we had some... non-business meetings back in the days."

"Back in the days? What do you mean?" she asked raising one eyebrow at him.

"Well. A year ago or so, to be more specific." he explained as Norma leaned back trying to contain the small smile that was threatening to blossom.

"Oh." was all that she managed to say, now feeling stupid at letting her curiosity take over and bring this whole thing up. But she was just curious, right? People are curious species in general.

"So…" he started, after chewing the bite of his food, trying to change the subject now. "What about you? Weren't you tempted by the 64-inch plasma tv?"

"Ah, George?" she scoffed, putting a half cut strawberry in her mouth. "Well, have to agree, the TV seemed really nice though."

"Then what did stop you?"

She chewed for a few seconds, thinking. "It's just… I'm not sure it would work out."

"Oh, it's not really that hard to learn how to use those fancy TVs." he joked, clearly understanding what she really meant.

She chuckled a bit, "I mean me and George. Well… we did go out a few times." Norma let out a sigh, hesitating for a moment before continuing. "But, I guess, he isn't my kind of a guy really. He's not someone for me." she explained.

"Really? How so?" Alex asked, her words making him feel a strange relief for some reason.

"I think we are very different. Too different. He's this sophisticated man, always in suit, perfect life, perfect job, perfect house. Expensive dinners, fancy vacations. Just everything perfect and somehow… fake at the same time?" she tried to explain her thoughts while gazing at her plate, "And that makes me uncomfortable, all that perfection. He has the same idealised image of me in his head and I just can't bring myself to tell him the truth, I just… don't feel like I want to tell him anything? That I'm not like that, that I'm flawed. I've walked through hell in my life and I still struggle. And I think that's the person I need. The person who is flawed same as me, who has seen the worst in life, not only the best. Someone who would see the real me, with all of my flaws and scars and story behind and love that, not some idealised version." she finally raised her eyes to see Alex staring at her, expression unreadable but eyes, the warmest brown, softly studying her face.

Alex had to fight the urge to brush his fingers over her hand, that was placed on the table. It's was all that he wanted to do at the second, to touch her skin, to show her something that he wasn't able to express in words. Something that he wasn't even able to explain to himself.

Norma chuckled weakly, tilting her head as she dropped her gaze from his. "Anyways…" she trailed off, turning her head to look through the window. The sky was now fully dark, clouds heavy and electrified, threatening rain any second, "I think we should hurry up if we want to get home before the storm kicks in."

The day had flown by, as they had spent the rest of it at home. With the dangerous storm raging outside it was impossible to leave the house. Alex had been on his phone most of the rest of the day, handling some work stuff, while Norma did some laundry and now was rewatching the movie, the same one she was supposed to watch with Alex the night before. And she was surprisingly enjoying it, same as the first part of it, the one she had seen before falling asleep.

It was almost 7pm and Norma could hear her stomach making tiny noises from the lack of food, and decided it was time for dinner. She headed to the kitchen, opening the fridge that was now fully stuffed with food. Taking out all the ingredients for her turkey pot pie, she arranged them on the counter, now searching through the cupboards for a cutting board. She couldn't hear Alex talking anymore, so she assumed he was done with his phone calls for the day. Finally.

"Alex!" she yelled loudly from the kitchen.

"What?" he said, standing almost behind her, making her startle.

"Oh geez, Alex! I didn't know you were in here." she exclaimed, putting her hand on her chest, calming down her heart. "I thought that maybe you would like to help me with dinner?" she asked him hopefully.

"Norma… I can't cook. You know that." Alex sighed.

"I will teach you then." she shrugged, "Come on, Alex, it will be fun!" her hand coming up to lightly punch his upper arm, "Oh, come on, say yes." she whined, giving him a puppy eyes look.

"Ok. Fine" he finally agreed, not really caring about cooking at all, but the idea of spending some time together actually sounded nice to him.

So they got started on the making of the turkey pot pie. Norma decided to teach him how to properly cut all the ingredients first, as best as she could. He was a rookie after all, and he wasn't the best student.

"FINELY chopped, Alex." Norma said looking at the onion that looked like it had been chopped four times, and four times only. "Those pieces are too big. Way too big." she said while making the crust for the pie.

"Well, it looks fine to me? Definitely good enough to fit in a mouth." he gave her a questionable look, staring down at the cutting board with the failed "chopped" onion on it.

"Well, we are not eating the onion itself." she raised one eyebrow at him, trying to suppress the giggle as she watched him, his face in a mixture of confusion and concentration while trying to cut it into smaller pieces, slowly.

"This thing hurts my eyes." he mumbled and Norma wasn't able to keep the laughter quiet anymore.

"Oh for god's sake, the big daddy of White Pine Bay defeated by the onion?" Norma let out a dramatic breath, shaking her head at him and bursting into laughter once again, seeing as his mouth also curled up into a smile. "Look," she said, taking the knife from him and showing all the steps, "you just take this, hold it there and then cut."

He watched her chop the onion into small pieces, just staring amazed at how simple it looked in her hands.

"See? Not that hard." she said, pointing at the perfectly shaped cubes, "You have to learn these things. I mean, how are you gonna survive when it's time for me to leave?" she asked jokingly, giving him a look.

He didn't answer her. His mind unwittingly drifting away to the day when she actually will leave. When this whole bubble will be over, the bubble they had created over the last couple of days. He hadn't felt this good and relaxed, since... he can't even remember the last time he felt happy. Not alone, not with someone. Ironical, of course, knowing what this whole situation was about. But still, it made him upset to think that she was going to leave at some point, that all of this is just temporary. He hadn't really thought about that part just yet, too focused on her presence here, at his place, with him.

Norma could see how his face fell a bit when she had said that. She hadn't intended it and, frankly, she didn't know it would be upsetting to him in any way possible. Even though he made her feel very welcome here, she still thought that finally giving back Alex his private life and his personal space will be a relief for him in some way.

"You okay?" she asked, sensing a sudden mood change.

"Yeah, why?" he asked, not making eye contact with her. He was afraid if she looked into them, into his eyes, they would simply tell her everything, give everything away without any words.

"You just look a little… distant." she said in a soft voice, scanning the side of his face. She could feel the warmth coming from his body, their sides almost touching each other because of the small space between them.

"Well, I guess… I guess, I was kind of getting used to having you around." he let out a weak chuckle, feeling a bit embarrassed of his honesty. He wasn't familiar with expressing how he felt. "And it's just that I… I will probably miss having you here." Alex finished off, shrugging a bit. He finally dared to turn his eyes to Norma, giving her a sad smile.

Norma didn't know what to say, clearly not expecting to hear these words from him. So she just stood there, looking at him, her gaze a mixture of surprise and gentleness. She could feel her heart start beating too fast. So fast that it almost hurt how hard it was slamming against her chest. The feeling of the blood in her veins going in full speed around inside of her body made all of her lucid thoughts go away for that moment. So she leaned forward before she could think, grabbing his face in her palms, her mouth suddenly crushing down over his in one fast move. At first he remained still, completely thrown by her unexpected action, but then parting his lips the second later. He deepened the kiss, his soft tongue slipping inside the sweetness of her waiting mouth, her fingers brushing over the side of his lips. His hands moving to pull her hard against him, the pressure of his body filling her with such heat and need that she clawed at his shoulders and bit his lip. She was the first one to let out a moan, the sound vibrating against his lips, his hands sliding down to get a firm grip around her hips, trying to push her even closer to him. He could feel her heart racing when her chest made contact to his own, her hot breath tickling his lips, driving him crazy.

In one fast and impatient move, not breaking a kiss, he turned them around, hoisting her up and on the counter, grabbing a hold of her legs to set her down on it. He felt as her legs immediately dangled around his waist, hands grabbing a hold on his face again. His hand traveled down from her waist to her rear, the contact making her let out another moan into his mouth as her hands were on his back, feeling every muscle there with her fingertips.

And then it was over.

The loud sound of his cellphone reaching them, breaking the moment and making them return to reality.

They broke apart from each other, Alex stepping back from between her legs. Lips swollen, chests rising and falling from heavy breathing, the sudden realisation of what just happened making them both look away from each other.

"I'm sorry, I-" Alex started, not quite sure what he was apologizing for, this or his phone interrupting them.

"No, I'm sorry, I- I don't know why… ehm…" Norma stuttered, not sure how to finish the sentence. "You should probably get that." she said sliding off the counter, pointing towards the living room where the sound was coming from.

He turned around, leaving the kitchen to get his phone, "Sheriff Romero" he answered in a serious voice, mentally cursing at the deputy on the other line for the timing of the call.

"Sheriff, I'm sorry to call you at this hour but you informed me to let you know if we have any news on the man named Cohem." the deputy stated in a rushed voice. "I think, you need to come to the station. It's urgent."


	10. Something sad and my legs shake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning- slight mentions of sexual assault and violence.

Alex arrived at the station in 10 minutes, now walking into the building, his deputy meeting him at the entrance.

“Tell me what happened.” he commanded while walking in the hallway, his deputy following him.

“We got a report of a sexual assault this evening. When we got to the address, corner of Stanley’s and St. Louis, near the mall, we found a woman there who called. The man was gone but she memorized his appearance and when we got her to the station and showed her a few photos she immediately recognized him. The woman is hundred percent sure it was James Cohen.” 

“Where is she now?” he asked in a stern voice, heading towards the office.

“Still here, in the interrogation room. She agreed to wait for the sheriff to give a statement.” the deputy explained, handing in the file. Alex now turned without another word, walking straight where the interrogation room was.

Alex was trained to deal with these type of situations. But it was never easy to talk to someone who has been a victim of sexual assault. That must be the hardest one for him to face. But it was part of his job and it needed to be done, without complaining. 

He walked in carefully into the interrogation room. The woman was sitting at the table, blankly staring at one point, not even turning her head to look at Alex, who was now standing at the opposite side. The bottom corner of her dress was torn, light blue material stained with the mixture of blood and dirt.

"I'm Sheriff Romero,” he started, receiving no reaction from the woman. “here's some coffee if you want." he put the cup in front of her, taking a seat in the chair, facing her. 

He waited a minute, to see if she would take the coffee or at least look at him. When she did neither of these things he had to start somewhere. 

"I know it’s hard, but the sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can catch him and get you home safe." he said gently, not wanting to push her, but having in mind that they can't sit here the entire night. 

She raised her head carefully, brushing a tangled blond curl from her face. Avoiding eye contact, she took the cup with both of her hands that were slightly shaking, slowly sipping on the warm coffee. He could tell that her eyes were puffy and red. From crying he assumed. 

"So... miss..?" he asked. He knew her name, but he wanted to ease his way into a conversation with the woman. 

"Young. It's Sarah Young." she whispered, not letting go of her coffee. 

"Okay. Sarah, would you like to tell me what happened?" he asked, taking a sip of his own coffee. 

"Not really. But I guess I don't have a choice." she muttered out bitterly. 

"No one says that you have to. But it would make my job much easier. I understand that it's hard to talk about but we need all the information we can get to catch this guy who did this to you." he tried to explain in a calm voice, looking at the woman who shifted nervously in her seat.

"Okay…” she started in a weak voice, eyes glued to the cup in her trembling hands. ”I… I was on my way home after I had done my shopping. Just a regular Wednesday’s grocery shopping, I always do it on Wednesdays as I leave earlier from work and...” Sarah’s voice trailed off, pausing for a second, quickly sipping on the coffee to calm herself down. “And today I parked my car at the very corner of the parking lot, behind the mall. I- I never park there and today I just, I don’t know, I-” her voice started to break, eyes running wildly.

“It’s ok. It’s ok, take your time.” Alex tried to calm her down, watching as she took few deep breaths trying to compose herself. 

“As…” she started again, after a pause, “as I was packing the bags in my trunk, I felt a hand over my mouth. I tried to push it away as another one took a hold on my wrist making it impossible for me to move and I could feel his breath near my ear as he whispered how glad he was we finally met." The horror could be seen in her deep blue eyes, her mind bringing back the horrible events with every word that was escaping her mouth. "He dragged me to the alley nearby and pushed me to the ground, so I fell on my knees... hard.” her hands went to her knees, rubbing them gently, feeling the dried blood there. “I tried to scream but the sound just wasn’t escaping my lips… It was dark, so dark, and there was no one around and he just kept talking to me, whispering how I should not fear and how I probably missed him too." she quieted again before continuing, “Then… then he flipped me over in one fast move and I just remember his hands all over me and his mouth on my neck, whispering over and over again… and when he pushed me back up against the wall, taking my face in his hands, he just stopped. He looked at me, just kept staring, his eyes scanning my the face in some mixture of confusion and disbelief and I used that moment and kicked him. I kicked him with all the strength I had left, pushed him off of me and started running. He didn’t chase me. He just went the opposite direction and that’s when I took a moment to call the police…”

"That’s very brave what you did. You’re a very strong woman.” Alex saidy in a encouraging tone, “My deputy told me that you recognized the man?" he asked in a serious voice, opening the file and taking out the photo, “Can you confirm again that it is him, that is the man who assaulted you near the mall?”

The woman’s eyes scanned the photo, her body starting to tremble again. “Yes. Yes that's him. It’s him, those eyes… I’m sure.” she sobbed.

“And you’ve never seen that man before? You’ve never met him?”

She looked again, shaking her head, “No. Never.” 

Alex had heard everything he needed, the statement being recorded and enough to start the investigation. He didn't need more information from her, his deputy taking it from here to file all the details in the process. He stood up, carefully, still thinking about the vulnerable woman in front of him, not wanting to startle her in any way. 

"My colleague is gonna take over from here for some more details, is that okay, Sarah?" he asked.. 

"Yes, that's fine. I really just wanna go home." she said in a low voice. 

"I understand. We will be done here soon, I promise." 

He was opening the door as her weak words reached him again. “It was one more thing…” voice half of a whisper, “I don’t know if it’s relevant but it’s just his voice, echoing in my head over and over again, the way he called me…” she frowned as if trying to remember. “He... he kept calling me Norma.”

Alex could feel his whole body going numb, the air becoming thick and all he could hear for a second was the heavy beat of his heart. He walked out without another word, storming into his office. Pacing around the room, feeling of sickness making his head spin, his mind going a hundred miles per hour. He needed to think, and think fast. 

"Regina! Come in here." he yells. He doesn't even use the intercom, his mind too focused on other things. 

"What is it Sheriff?" she puts her head inside the office, standing behind the door. 

"Put three more patrols on the streets for James Cohen. I want them scanning every fucking corner of this town." he said in a stern voice. 

"Roger that."

Without waiting any longer, he stormed out of the station, heading towards his SUV, strong wind making it harder to walk. He grabbed his phone in his pocket, one hand opening the car’s door, other one holding the cell phone. He could feel the sweat on his palms and fingers while typing her number. 

"Hey Alex, are you on your way?" she answered after the third signal, his mind already making up the worst scenarios.

"Listen Norma, I need you to listen to me." he started, starting the engine at the same time. 

"What? What happened? What's going-" she dropped a series of questions, sensing the alarming tone in his voice immediately.

"Just listen to me and do as I say.” he cut her off raising his tone, “Lock the front door and turn the lights off.” 

"But Alex..." 

"Do it, Norma. Now." words a strict command.

"Okay okay, hold on." she hissed, running to the door, doing exactly as he had told her, still not understanding any of this craziness going on over the phone. She locked it, even doubled checked to see if she really did it properly, using all of the locks that were on his door. Then she went back to the kitchen, turning the lights off there, her quick breathing heard over the phone.

"Okay. It's done." she said after a minute, voice slightly trembling in the silent house. 

"Good. I will be right over. Don't go anywhere, just stay inside.” he said in hurried tone, now feeling guilty for scaring her so much, but he had no choice. “Everything is fine, just wait for me, I will be there in 5 minutes." 

"I’m not even gonna ask now what is all of this, but please, Alex, please just be careful." she whispered gently, voice a plead.

“I will. Just stay there, Norma.” he hung up, hands pressing hard into the wheel.

Norma now sat at the kitchen table in the dark, not knowing what was going on but hands slightly shaking from that fear of unknown. She looked through the window, the strong wind was still moving the branches outside but the rain had stopped. It was the sound of a house telephone that broke the silence, the sudden noise of ringing startling her. Assuming it was Alex again, maybe not being able to reach out to her on her mobile because of the storm, she rushed to the phone, picking it up.

“Hey, is everything ok?” she asked in a worried tone as soon as she answered it, frowning when she heard no response. “Alex?” holding the phone to her ear, she was now listening to the hoarse breathing from the other end.

“Hello, Norma.” throaty voice finally reached her, making her breathing stop. “It’s good to finally hear your sexy voice.”

She stood there, the hand that was holding the phone now going numb, rapid beating of her own heart filling her ears. “Who is this?” she whispered in a shaky voice, even though she already knew who it was. She recognized the second she heard it.

“Oh, don’t tell me you don’t remember me, kitty.” he let out a breathy chuckle into the phone, the sound making goosebumps appear on Norma’s skin. “I know you do. And I know you missed me. I missed you too, baby, missed watching you in that window stripping down your clothes… I know that show was for me, that you liked me watching you, that you wanted me there to-”

“Listen, you sick fuck, I don’t know what’s wrong with you but the thing I know is that you’re gonna be rotting in jail soon.” she hissed, rage taking over her body as she gripped the spiral cable, nails digging into the phone.

“Don’t play hard to get. I know you would love it, to have a man in your life that would make you feel like a real woman.” he whispered deeply, “And that sheriff, is he screwing you? Don’t worry, not for long, kitten. I will rescue you soon and show what it’s like to be with a real man, just wait.”

She was standing speechless, blood running cold. His words brought all the horrible memories from her life, the feel of sickness rising in her stomach as the whole room was spinning. The second she heard the sounds of someone pulling in near the house, lights coming through the window, she hung up, smashing the phone down, running to the bedroom and locking herself in there. Her whole body was shaking now, his words and his laugh echoing in her head over and over again. She buried her face in her hands, trying to breath, but the panic was suffocating her.

Alex was there faster than ever, speeding the entire ride home, time becoming a blur to him. He pushed on the brakes so hard while driving up to his driveway that he was sure it would leave marks from the tires. But he didn't care now, all he could feel at that moment was blood rushing through his veins with such a force, that he was afraid it would rip them open.

He found his keys, unlocking the door and rushing into the house.

"Norma?" he called her into the darkness walking into the living room, seeing it empty. 

"Norma! " he yelled this time after checking the kitchen, not finding her there either. He could feel the panic creeping in as she wasn’t responding and he couldn’t find her. Heading towards the bedroom, he found it’s door locked. “Norma are you here? It’s me, Alex, it’s fine.” he tried to keep the voice calm, not wanting to stress her even more.

She didn’t answer and neither did she unlock the door, so Alex was now losing all the calmness he had, worrying tone settling in, “Norma, are you there? Please open the door, are you ok?” he listened for a second, trying to hear anything, even the slightest sound that would confirm that she is there and she’s alright. He turned the knob in the door again. Nothing. There was no time left, without hesitation he stepped back, cocked his leg and kicked the door close to the knob. The door frame cracked but held, so he kicked again, a splinter of wood flying off around the lock mechanism. One more kick and the door flew open banging into the wall.

He found her sitting on the ground, knees pressed to her chest and head buried in her palms. He rushed there, kneeling in front of her, inspecting for any injuries. “Norma, it’s Alex, I need you to look at me.” he whispered in a soft voice, reaching to brush a hand on her head. “What happened? Please, talk to me.”

Finally she looked up at him, as if his touch brought her back from some kind of trance. He could see pure fear in her eyes now being replaced by a relief, tears starting to form in her eyes as she saw him. Without saying a word, she leaned forward, wrapping her hands around him, pressing her face into his chest. His hand came to stroke her back, her hair, feeling her shuddering sobs echoing against him. 

“It’s ok, I’m here now.” he murmured softly into her hair, cradling her in his arms, rocking back and forth slightly, “Just tell me what happened.” 

After a few minutes in his embrace her sobs quieted, breathing coming back to normal. Without pulling away from his chest, she turned her head to the side. “He knows I’m here, Alex.” she whispered, “He called here, just before you came back, and he knows. He said a lot of horrible things… He- he said he’s coming for me and and-” her voice broke, warm tears running down her cheeks, soaking through his shirt. “I’m just so scared. I’m scared he will find me no matter what… and I’m scared for you.”

His body was now burning with rage and his heart was breaking for how scared she was. He pressed his lips to her temple, words a quiet whisper against her skin, “I’m gonna protect you, Norma.”

After that he stood up quickly, still holding her in his hands but his palms coming to cup her face. “I need you to listen to me. Go and pack your stuff. Just take all the things you need and throw them in the bag. Quick. We're leaving." 

"But where are we going?" she asked, voice still weak and filled with worry.

“Just trust me, ok?” he said looking at her as she nodded, the sky blue in her eyes making him wanna lean forward and kiss away all the fear. But he held himself from doing it, moving away instead and grabbing her bag from where it was sitting near the bed, handing it to her. He then found his, starting to walk around the room to grab the things they would need. She moved to help him, packing the limited amount of things she had brought with her to his house. 

Alex did a quick check, inside the house and around it, looking suspiciously around every corner, feeling the rage inside of him boiling for being forced to leave his own home. It better be not him that finds this guy, or he will forget his sheriff’s status and make him pay for all these things.

He found his cellphone in his pocket, dialing the number of the station. “It’s Romero. I’ll need a car change into unmarked SUV for a witness transportation. After 2 hours in Jay’s underground parking lot, Portland. Can you do that?” he commanded, waiting for confirmation, “Great. And no marked police cars there, thanks.”

He hung up, walking into the kitchen, seeing Norma zipping up the bag there. “You ready? We need to leave now.”

She nodded, taking one last look around the room and following Alex out to the car. 

This was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> You're always very welcome to share your thoughts and ideas here or you can reach out to us on twitter or curiouscat, both as Incognito_WC
> 
> Love,  
> IWC


	11. Sometimes you go places

She could feel how tense he was, his knuckles were almost white when she looked how hard he was steering the wheel. But he also looked tired, like he had every struggle possible on his shoulders. And not only his own issues, but hers too. And she felt guilty because of that. After tonight, he looked almost ten years older. The stress was clearly all over his face. And of course she was scared and nervous too, but she hated that she was the reason why Alex's life got interrupted as well. That was not her intention, but she didn't trust anyone else in this town. Probably not even in this world, as much as she trusted Alex.

"Where are we going?" she asked, looking at him with careful eyes.

"West Coast." his answer short and clear, eyes focused on the road but the mind clearly preoccupied with other things.

"That's gonna take a while." she stated the obvious. If she didn't have so little energy, she would've probably make a big deal out of how far away that was. But she had no energy at all right now, and decided not to argue with him.

"Yes. But it's safe." he said seriously after a little pause. "You should probably get some sleep" he looked at her, nodding that it was okay.

"I'm not that tired really." she replied widening her eyes a bit. But soon her small yawn gave her away, finally making him smile. Stubborn as ever. He could tell by the dark bags under her eyes that she needed her sleep. So he turned down the music a bit, and changed to a much more calmer radio station. He fixed the heating, turning it up so the car filled with hot air, clicking the switch to put on the seat heather on her chair. And after only eight minutes she was out for the evening.

He was supposed to meet up for a car trade in Portland, and after that they only had around 2 hours left to seaside, which wasn't too bad. But it was one hell of a drive to do on your own. He wanted her to get her rest, as this situation was probably not only emotionally but also physically draining her. And to be honest, it was getting to him too. That constant fear of losing someone you care about terrified him since he had experienced that before, with his mother. And Norma was probably the only woman he had ever cared so much about besides his mom, and he still couldn't it explain it. At least not in words yet.

As an hour passed by, Alex decided he needed some coffee. If he was going to be driving all by himself he needed something strong to keep himself up and focused on the road. And he needed gas either way, so he pulled into a gas station on the driveway, not really giving up any time since it was on the way. He went in to get his coffee, some water and apple juice for her, in case she was thirsty when she wakes up. He filled up the car with gas and then they were back on the road again, continuing their way to safety.

After a few hours they arrived in Portland, Alex driving through the town to the place they arranged to meet for a car trade. Norma hadn't even stirred in her sleep, snuggled in the passenger's seat, hands wrapped around herself and head tilted to the side, resting against the window. He watched her for a moment, her slightly opened mouth and calm breathing making him feel guilty for having to intrude her peaceful sleep.

"Norma," he whispered to her gently, looking as her eyelashes fluttered a bit, "Norma, wake up."

He drove in a parking garage, only a few cars left there which wasn't unusual considering the hour. His cop's eye immediately recognised the car that was send by the station, black range rover parked at the very corner, even though it was an unmarked one, exactly as he asked for. He parked next to the car, as the two men dressed in casual clothes stepped out of it, one leaning at the hood and looking around, other waiting at the opened passenger's side door.

"Norma you need to wake up." he caressed her arm gently and soothing, since she made no signs of waking up anytime soon.

"No, I don't wanna." she muttered still half in her sleep, now frown appearing on her face that was so angel calm just a second ago.

He chuckled at her, not really expecting that answer.

"Well, you have to. We are doing a car switch now." he explained, watching as she suddenly jumped, looking around with wide eyes.

"A car switch?!" she exclaimed, fully awake now. "You mean we are changing cars? Now? What for?" she asked one question after the other.

"Yes and yes. And for the safety reasons, to make sure my police SUV won't be followed as we head to seaside. I'm gonna get our bags from the trunk, you get into this black rover." he said and stepped out of the car.

Norma looked at her surroundings, in the rear view mirror seeing as Alex nodded at the two men, opening the trunk to take their bags out. She sighed, checking herself in the mirror to touch up her messy sleep hair a bit, and stepped out of the car.

"You okay?" he asked with concern in his voice, closing the trunk as she gave him a small nod.

"Miss, please, follow me." one man said, leading Norma to where the passenger's door was opened, waiting till she got in. "And I need your phone, miss."

"What?"

"I need your phone. It's a standard procedure. We are providing you with a new one, here." the man explained, handing in a box to Norma. "It has a card and everything inside. Now I need to take your phone."

"Ok, ok." she hissed, pulling out her phone from the pocket and handing it to him.

"Thank you, miss." he said, closing the car's door.

Norma looked around in the car, nervously brushing her hand against the cold black leather seat, watching Alex grab a few stuff from the SUV, exchange a few words with the men, one of them handing something in. Alex then shook their hands, finally getting into the driver's side.

"Ok, it's done, we can go." he stated, turning on the engine and driving out of the garage back into the night.

"Well, that was fast." she said, putting on a seatbelt, "Who were those guys?"

"That's how it supposed to happen, time is very important in this act." he explained, turning back into the main road, "And these were guys sent from the station of Portland." he sounded so professional.

"What did he give you?" she frowned.

"New phone. You got yours changed too?"

"Yeah, I did." she paused for a moment, looking through the window. "I've always seen those kind of things on action movies, never thought I would participate in something like that." she let out a weak sigh, snuggling back into the seat, tugging at her sweater sleeves to bury her palms in it as the air in the car was chilly and she was still sleepy.

He didn't say anything, it was his hand that found his way to hers that was resting at her thighs. His eyes still on the road, he brushed his fingers against her soft palm, intertwining their fingers and squeezing it gently. And like that, this one simple gesture was enough for her to know that everything is gonna be alright because he is here.

They sat like that for a moment, her other palm on top of their holding hands, till he had to put his hand back on the wheel while making a turn. She missed his touch immediately, warmed up hands starting to cool off again, so she leaned at the panel to turn the heating up more.

"I got you apple juice if you want." he said, one hand reaching into to take the drink, handing it to her.

"Oh, thank you." she smiled, pleased that he noted what her favorite drink was. Well, he was a cop. Observant.

She was drinking the juice, the drink waking her up a bit more, now suddenly making her feel bored.

"How much is it left?" she asked, sipping through the straw as a little kid.

"About an hour or so."

Norma let out a sigh, looking through the window at the passing street lights. She then leaned up again, narrowing her eyes at the buttons in front of her. Turning and twisting a few, she finally found what she was looking for, a radio. A sound of some old rock'n'roll song filled the car, instantly raising Norma's mood, making her hum along.

After the hour had passed, music making it all way faster, they finally arrived at the seaside. The sky was still fully dark, but way clearer than back in White Pine Bay. Norma rolled down the window, breathing in the fresh warm air, filled with salty notes.

"We're finally here." Alex announced, as they passed the town's sign, welcoming them to Gearhart, announcing the population of 1,400.

"It's a small town." she noticed, looking through the window. "And pretty distant."

"Yes, that's what makes it a safe place for us to stay." he explained, seeing her shift a bit as he brought back the real reason they were here in the first place. "Me and my family used to go here for holidays when I was a kid." he tried to change the subject, "We used to stay here for about a week, at this specific motel. I haven't been here for years now, I hope it's still there and working."

A black range rover pulled up in the full parking lot in front of the motel. Not only was it still in business but also renovated, way bigger than Alex had remembered. It was now a four storey white building, the sign announcing about free wi-fi, room service and even a small restaurant in the motel.

They made their way to the office, finding a young woman at the reception desk. The business must be really going great if they have people working night shifts, Alex thought.

"Good evening, welcome to the Marina motel." the girl smiled at both of them. "How can I help you?" she asked them politely.

"Evening. Well, I see it's a pretty busy season for you, do you have any rooms available?" he asked, not quite hoping as they barely found a place to park. But also, he didn't know any other motels around here, besides this one.

"Let me check." the woman said, typing in something in the computer. "We have two singles, one fourth floor and one in the first."

Alex looked at Norma that was standing to his side, a worried look on her face.

"Do you…" she started hesitantly, "maybe you have any doubles?"

The girl looked back at the computer screen, "No, sorry, ma'am. Only singles left." she gave Norma an apologetic shrug.

Alex saw a slight sign of panic crossing her eyes, as her breathing quickened.

"Norma, are you alright?" he asked in concern, seeing as she was almost hyperventilating now.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm just…."

"Do you wanna get some fresh air? Come on." he took her arm lightly, leading her outside.

They stood outside the motel, Alex hand rubbing her back in slow circular motion, "Norma, I need you to breath. Easy, just like that. Breath in, breath out." he whispered, trying to calm her down.

After a few minutes of standing outside her steady breathing was back, panic in her eyes now replaced with tears threatening to fall.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I don't know what happened, it's just-" her voice broke, left hand wiping away the tear that fell down her cheek, "I thought about staying alone in that room and I- I just got so scarred. I'm sorry, that's so stupid." he chuckled in weak voice, "I'm acting like some three year old child, that's stupid, I'm sorry."

"It's not stupid, Norma. You had a panic attack and it's normal considering what is happening." he said looking at her, "You're incredibly strong but you're allowed to be scared. It's human. And all this shit you're dealing with, it would break anyone else in half."

She looked at him, her eyes still watery but now a slight smile appeared on her lips.

"It's gonna be ok, you'll get through this. And I will help you." his thumb came to her face to wipe away the trace of tears on her cheek. "Now let's go sort this room thing out."

They climber the stairs to the fourth floor, Alex carrying their bags as Norma was walking in front with the key for room 47, looking around to find the right doors.

The woman at the reception was very helpful, checking the system again to see if maybe someone was leaving soon, seeing that some couple will be leaving tomorrow, so she would reserve it and inform them as soon as they leave. As for tonight, she offered a folding bed in one of the single rooms. He of course agreed, he even thought of sleeping on the ground if that meant Norma feeling safe, he didn't care much for his comfort.

As Norma finally found the door they were looking for, struggling with the lock for a second and finally walking in, hand looking for a light switch.

"Oh, it's cozy in here!" she said in a surprised voice, looking around the light colored room. Every piece of furniture was from pine wood, single bed covered in blue sheets just in front of the huge window with flowy milk-colored curtains. A huge painting of sea above the bed, sand colored carpets and ship in bottle on a nightstand giving the room marinistic vibe, "Well, now I know why this place is called Marina motel?" she chuckled, examining the tiny ship under the glass. She was always wondering how do people make these.

"Yeah, my mother loved this place. Loved the sea, saying it has some potent power to make us think things we like to think." Alex said, placing their bags on the small table and locking the door behind them. "She always dreamed of redecorating our house into similar style, pine wood and light flowy curtains. But my father said that it was impractical and would look cheap."

"Well I don't think this style looks cheap at all." Norma said with confident. She liked the style to be completely honest. Always wished to go see the beach as a child, like all the other kids at school who were spending their holidays near the sea with their families.

She put down the decoration, walking to her bag to unpack as the knock on the door made her jump.

"They probably brought my folding bed." Alex said, looking at Norma's scared eyes, "It's fine."

He was right, he found the folding bed with additional sheets left behind the door. Even though it was a single room, there was enough space to place his bed near the wall, between door to the bathroom and TV table.

"Are you hungry?" Norma asked out of nowhere, while going through the stuff in her bag.

"Are you?" he returned the question, "There is this gas station here that works 24/7, it's not far from here, I can go see if I there's something I can get there to..." and he stopped in the middle of the sentence, staring at Norma who was now holding a big tupperware with a huge smile on her face.

"What's that?" he asked, frowning a bit, not quite understanding what was in it.

"Our turkey pot pie?" one eyebrow raised.

"You brought the food we made?" he laughed at her. She looked adorable.

"Of course. I wasn't gonna waste all that food, I'm not crazy" she huffed like the idea was total madness.

"I don't think we have plates in here or..."

"I brought two forks though?" she shrugged, other hand waving two silver forks in the air.

"Clever." he chuckled.

They sat on the bed, sharing the big tupperware, eating and laughing together. It felt like they have done this a million times before, such a domestic cosiness making both of them forget all the stress for a moment, until she broke it.

"Why you got called to the station?" she asked, looking at him.

"What?"

"You never told me why you got called to the station then."

Alex sat there, not saying anything for a moment, her eyes inspecting his unreadable expression. He didn't how much he should say. What he should say to not cause another panic attack.

"Station got a report about another woman assaulted. She gave a description and recognized Cohen from the mugshots of his previous arrests, so I was called in." he explained, looking at his hands. He wasn't lying. He just wasn't telling the whole details, but there was no need for that. All that mattered now was that she was here, with him, and she was safe.

"Is that woman ok?" she asked after a pause, tone a mixture of worry and shock. He saw in her face how the news still hit her, so he was even more sure it was the right decision not going into details.

"Yes. Yes, she is ok. Still after a shock but safe now. He attacked her but she got away in time and called the police." he saw Norma relax a bit now that she knew the woman wasn't hurt, "Talking about this, I'm just gonna make a few calls to the station. I'll be quick." he said, getting up from the bed where they had been eating together, still chewing.

"Okay, big shot." she grinned a little, getting another bite.

He went into the bathroom to get some privacy, not wanting her to overhear the conversation. It didn't take long, the number was already in the contacts of the new phone, reaching out directly to the deputy that he left in charge in White Pine Bay. And as soon as he finished the conversation he stepped outside, to join her once again on the bed.

"What did they say?" she asked impatiently with food in her mouth.

"Nothing special. They are still on the patrol, got some more witnesses who claimed they had seen the man, a few of them were brought to the station to make a statement." he said casually, not trying to make a big deal out of it right now.

"Where are they patrolling exactly?" she asked him, stopping her eating.

"Everywhere around White Pine Bay. They will start the search in the towns nearby when the sun is up." he informed her curious self.

They continued eating in silence. Norma didn't ask more questions, because to be honest, she didn't wanna know too much. She was done worrying for the day and she trusted Alex with all of her heart. She was sure he had everything under control.

As they eventually finished up all the food they had, both agreed it was time for bed. Norma could tell from his face that Alex was pretty tired, dark shadows under his eyes and heavy eyelids giving away his need for a good rest. She was actually pretty tired herself, even though she had good 10 hours sleep the night before. Fear was exhausting.

"Alex, I really think you should take the bed. I slept in the car and you really need a good rest." Norma said after walking out of the bathroom, putting her clothes she had worn today in her bag. He was already sitting on the folding bed, not even having a discussion with her about who's gonna sleep where.

"No, this is fine Norma" Alex said. He didn't really care where he slept as long as it was in the same room as her, knowing she is ok. And the extra bed wasn't that bad as you would expect, mattress thin but wider than the standard single bed, reminding him of those times in marines when they used to sleep on the similar ones.

"But Alex, you've been awake for so long and look at that mattress, your back's gonna-"

"Norma. I'm fine here, really. Take the bed." he was not gonna take the bed and let her sleep here, not even getting into further discussion.

"Ok. Fine." Norma snapped back, giving in and jumping into the bed. She got comfortable under the soft covers, looking into the dark ceiling.

She could hear him making the small bed that was right next to hers, the metal springs of the mattress making a funny squeaky noise as he got under the covers. A few minutes passed and Norma decided to break the silence.

"Alex?" she asked quietly, just in case he had already fallen asleep.

"Hmm?" he hummed in the dark, eyes still closed.

"Are you in danger?" she whispered, with a worried tone in her voice.

Alex sighed, opening his eyes again.

"We are both safe here, Norma." he said carefully. "We just have to lay low for a while until they catch this guy. You don't need to worry about it, okay?" he reassured her in a calming tone.

This fear had been too much lately, breaking her walls down that she had built up for herself and her family. As a protection, as a cover up to let bad things stay on the other side of that wall. And someone was trying to tear her walls down with such a force that it made her question herself and her strength. Norma was not unfamiliar with rough battles. She didn't think they had made her stronger in anyway, she just consider strength to be something that you're not aware of that you have. Something that is hidden deep inside. But this case made her question it, all over again. How much can a person take? What if she was not strong enough, just wrapping herself in all those illusions?

"Okay." she whispered in a quiet and weak voice, bottom lip trembling. "I just… why me?" she spoke again after a minute, trying to keep her voice from breaking. "I just don't get it, Alex. Why me, of all the women in that damn town, why it had to be me?" She used to ask herself the same question often. Why her? Why it was her who had this childhood, why it was her who was born in that family, why it was her who always ended up in abusive relationships, why it was her whose son was sick, why why why. She knew, from the very young age, when other girls were thinking about clothes boys, she knew that it will always be harder for her. That maybe she was born under some unlucky star, she had no other explanation for why she could never get to the top. To live at peace without having to fight in blood for her and her son's lives.

"I don't know Norma... " he tailed off, brushing a hand over his tired face. He had an idea why.

"I mean, he could have picked anyone he wanted. Anyone. Why it had to be me?" voice a mixture of anger and desperation.

"Norma. This guy is a nutjob. I wouldn't think too much about it." he said and shuffled around under the covers.

It got quiet again and he worried he might have said something wrong.

"You are beautiful, Norma. You're the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. That's why." he said afters a few minutes in silence, his low whisper echoing in the dark room. Part of him expected that maybe she hadn't heard it, maybe she was already asleep and he didn't make a fool of himself. Alex closed his eyes shut, exhaling deeply in relief. Yes, she was sleeping.

Suddenly, a sound reached his ears. He could her her feet make contact with the cold wooden floor, then light steps toward his side. His breathing stopped as he felt her pull the cover up by its side carefully, the folding bed shifting a bit at the weight of her sneaking in. She placed herself on his side, lying like that for a second, not moving. He didn't move either, eyes closed, listening her breathing next to him. Norma then moved closer, snuggling her face at the crook of his neck, placing a small kiss there. She wrapped her hands around his upper arm, letting out a long breath and closing her eyes. Yes, she was safe here.


	12. Things fall out of my life and dissapear

Norma was sitting on the bed, looking through the same few magazines for the third time today. They changed the rooms today, as the girl at the reception had promised. They were informed when that couple checked out of their room so they can move in there. Of course both of them knew it was going to be a double bed, but neither of them said a word about it. And to be honest, it didn’t felt that strange after all, to sleep in the same bed?

This room was way bigger than the previous one. You couldn’t even call it just a room, it had a separated sleeping area and a small living room with a couch and tv in it. That’s where she found the magazines and that’s where Alex was spending most of the day, mainly talking on the phone and handling important “work stuff” as he said. She hadn’t talked to him since they moved this morning and she wasn’t blaming him, she knew more than anyone how serious the situation was and how much it affected both of them. But still, sitting there, with a bunch of magazines was starting to get on her nerves.

Norma closed the magazine, letting out a long sigh. It felt so hard for her to sit there and do nothing and she had no idea how long it would take to catch that guy. Back there she had a motel to run, sons to look after or at least a dinner to make. And this place didn’t even have a kitchen. Even though she felt safe here, she also felt bored. She got off the bed, going to the living room and finding Alex there, writing something down with a right hand, left one holding a phone to his ear. Norma sat down on the couch, turning on the tv and turning up the volume. The sound immediately drew Alex’s attention, making him frown at her, gesturing to turn down the volume. She ignored his angry look, eyes tied to the screen to some program she actually had no interest in.

“Norma?” he whispered angrily, holding the phone away from his ear and he covered the mic with his hand so the other person on the phone wouldn’t hear. 

She gave him a dead look, turning her head back to the screen, obviously ignoring his attempt to get the volume to turn down. 

“I’m gonna call you back.” Alex said back into the phone, hanging up angrily. “What the hell, Norma? Can’t you see I’m working here?” he said frowning at her, not quite understanding what she was trying to prove right now.

She let out a deep sigh, rolling her eyes at his annoyed tone, “Well you’ve been on your phone all day. You don’t tell me anything, no details, no new information. Nothing.” she snapped.

He couldn’t tell where all of this was coming from, he never filled her in with all the details and she never asked him. “You know well enough that I can’t discuss the details with you, Norma.”

She sat there quiet for a minute, not knowing what to say. Of course she knew that, he had told her million times before. But she just wanted to talk about something with him, to spend some time together maybe.

“We should do something.” she starts after a pause, her tone now changed, a bit lighter.

“What?” he frowns again, not understanding what does she mean.

“I mean we should do something besides me sitting there and you being on the phone all the time, it’s not much to be done from here anyways.” she explained, shrugging a bit. It even surprised herself how relaxed and safe she felt here with him, to the point where she didn’t worry that much about what’s going on back there and just leaving the situation to be handled by the police back in White Pine Bay. “You maybe have a card deck? We could play this-”

“Jesus, Norma, I’m not playing stupid cards with you, this is not a holiday.” he snaps, his voice annoyed again, face twisted into a confused look. He immediately regrets for being this harsh but how could this woman be so easy and think about games when there was an actual serious threat to her safety?

She looks at him, as Alex could see a hurtful look cross her face. It’s just a slight hint which is quickly replaced with anger, “Oh, ok.” she scoffs standing up, her eyes burning into his. She then turns around to leave, but stops in her tracks and turns back to him, “You know what, I actually feel like this asshole Cohen is winning. That he got me somehow. He still managed to screw my life without even getting to me directly because I’m locked up in some room, 300 miles away from my home, having nothing to do all day besides a bunch of lame magazines giving me advices on how to lose 5 pounds and one person, ONE PERSON who just ignores me all day long. So congratulations to him, he won.” the rant leaves her out of breath. Her chest is rising and falling fast, she could feel anger radiating off her body.

“You think this is fun for me?” he snapped back in cold voice, “You think this is how I want to be spending my time?”

Norma didn’t say anything else, just stood there speechless, breathing heavily. She then shook her head, turning around and storming out of the room, slamming the door with a loud bang.

Alex was left standing in the middle of the room. He shouldn’t have said that and he knew it, but all of that stress was finally catching up with him. That guy was still somewhere out there, he was free, probably walking the streets, making up other plans in his sick mind, thinking about her… He wanted to be there, to find him and make him regret all the things he had put Norma through, to take the justice in his own hands and make the guy afraid of even thinking about her or mentioning her name. He couldn’t stand the idea of sitting here and waiting, not doing enough. It made him feel powerless and Alex hated this feeling. But he also knew that he couldn’t leave her alone, that at least staying by her side would guarantee she is safe.

Half an hour had passed as Alex was sitting on the couch, eyes glued to the silenced tv but mind preoccupied with other thoughts. Usually he wouldn’t care someone being mad at him, he wouldn’t feel guilty for something he said but now it felt like a heavy stone was pushing his chest. Of course he could never blame her for what is happening. He was too hard on her, he knew how much pressure she was under and how her life was messing up with her these past few days. And he also knew it was his choice to stay with her all this time, to be there for her. He would have done the same without her even asking to stay at his house in the first place.

He stood up, quietly opening the door of the living room that she had slammed shut while leaving. Standing outside the closed bedroom door, he listened for few minutes, then finally knocking gently.

Nothing.

“Norma? Can I come in?” he asked in a low and calm voice. 

He knocked again and when she didn’t answer him Alex was beginning to get worried. So he slowly opened the door, sticking his head inside carefully.

Norma was sitting on the bed, head tilted down flipping through the magazine, fast and rough, sure not paying any attention to it. She didn’t even lift her head to look at him, completely ignoring his obvious presence in the room. 

“Norma…” Alex began, not really knowing what to say. He wasn’t used to apologizing, indeed he almost never did, especially for being harsh. But with Norma it was different. Everything was different with her.

He sat down at the end of the bed, looking at her in silence.

“Norma, please,” he began again in a whisper, “look at me.”

She dramatically raised her head, giving Alex a dead look, then dropping her eyes back to the magazine.

He let out a deep sigh, he knew it’s not gonna be that simple with her.

“Norma, look, I’m sorry ok?”

Still nothing.

“I know that it is stressful for you and… and I shouldn’t have yelled at you like I did.” he said in a calm voice, trying to pick the right words. “And I’m sorry. We will catch this guy soon, I swear, you don’t have to worry about it, soon you will be going home. I know it’s not how you would like to be spending your time and that I’m actually not the easiest roommate…” he chuckled awkwardly, shrugging. “But it will be over soon, I promise.”

He looked back at Norma to find her now staring at him, eyes soft but with a tint of sadness in them.

“It’s not that…” she started in a weak voice, “It’s not that, Alex.”

He studied her face not quite understanding what she meant.

“It’s just…” her voice hesitant, no trace of an earlies anger could be sensed, “I just feel so lonely here. I feel safe with you, always, but I also miss interacting with people, I miss feeling normal, just doing something normal and not thinking about all of this, about him. I...” she was studying her own hands, while trying to find the right words. “I miss you.” she looked at him with a tears threatening to fall from her ice blue eyes, “And I know it’s stupid, cause you’re here and it’s not like we are-” she shrugged, letting out a weak chuckle, few tears rolling down her cheeks, “I mean, not like you have to spend time with me or anything, it’s just that I maybe got used to talking with you and-” she shook her head, wiping off the marks of tears on her cheeks, letting out an awkward laugh “Ahh, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have- never mind, forget it. It’s stupid, I-”

Her thought was cut off as she felt Alex’s fingers softly brushing over the top of her hand. He caressed the silky white skin of her palm and it send goose bumps blossoming along her arms. 

“It’s not stupid, Norma.” he whispered, taking her hand in his, “Get dressed, we’re going out to dinner tonight.”

She looked at him with confusion in her eyes but not pulling away her hand from his.

“Oh, no, Alex, we really don’t have to. And, I mean, look at me.” she gestured at her red eyes, “I think I’m too sad and to worried to go anywhere-”

“That’s what alcohol is for. And it’s nothing fancy, I just saw there’s this restaurant downstairs at the motel.” he gave her a soft smile, standing up from the bed. “So we are going, Norma.”

Without another word he left the room to give her some privacy, and so that he could get dress himself. 

Norma jumped into the shower faster than light itself, feeling the excitement in her stomach. It was a pleasant feeling, a good excitement, more of butterflies than some gut twisting feeling of worry and sickness, that she was so used to feeling lately. She looked forward to spend the evening out. She wanted to go out and have dinner, to forget and just to feel normal again. And also the idea of spending it with Alex, just two of them, made her skin tingle.

When she got out of the shower, it was time to fix all that blond mess on her head. Her small fingers brushed over her damp hair, twisting every lock into separate curl, leaving her with soft and beachy waves. She then applied her makeup, spicing her everyday’s soft look with some darker eyeshadows at the corners, then putting on a few coats of mascara, framing those beautiful blue eyes of hers. To finish it, she tinted her lips with dark berry color lipstick.

There was not much choice for clothes, as she only had a few pieces packed. Going through her bag, she was praying to find this one dress she wasn’t sure she had packed. Luckily enough, it was there, at the very bottom of her bag. Dark, knee length navy blue dress trying behind the neck, hugging the top part of her body and waist, showing off some cleavage, then becoming flowy at the bottom. 

She had only one pair of black heels to go with the dress, but she was still pretty happy of how well the outfit looked despite limited wardrobe.

Norma did one last check in the mirror, spraying her favorite perfume on her neck and wrists, before entering the other room to see Alex standing there all dressed up as well, waiting. He had black pants on, with a dark button up shirt. It was still weird for Norma to see him out of his sheriff’s uniform but she had to admit he looked handsome.

“Wow.” he said with a smile, “You look beautiful.” She really was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. 

Norma blushed slightly, feeling a bit shy under his eyes that were digging deep into her. She wasn't complaining though. In other cases, she often got annoyed by the hungry eyes of men sneaking all over her body, but somehow she secretly loved it when he, Alex, got stunned over her beauty, because his eyes on her body felt just right.


End file.
